Smotrich Claims ICC Sought Arrest Warrant, Orders West Bank Evacuation
Bezalel Smotrich announced the immediate evacuation of Khan al-Ahmar following reports of an International Criminal Court application, drawing sharp criticism from watchdogs and Palestinian officials.
Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced on Tuesday that the International Criminal Court prosecutor had requested an arrest warrant against him, a move he attributed to the Palestinian Authority and characterised as a “declaration of war.” Speaking at a news conference broadcast on his X account, Smotrich stated he had been informed the previous night that the prosecutor in The Hague had filed the request. He refused to disclose the specific charges for which the warrant was sought.
In immediate response to the alleged legal action, Smotrich declared he would sign an order to evacuate the Palestinian Bedouin community of Khan al-Ahmar in the occupied West Bank. The community, home to more than 750 people, is located approximately 10 kilometres east of Jerusalem’s Old City and is surrounded by Israeli settlements. Smotrich described the warrant request as hypocritical dictates from biased bodies, asserting that Israel, as a sovereign state, would not accept such measures.
The ICC prosecutor’s office declined to comment on media speculation regarding the alleged application for an arrest warrant. This development follows the court’s issuance of arrest warrants in November 2024 for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, who face accusations of war crimes and crimes against humanity related to the war against Hamas in Gaza.
Smotrich linked the planned evacuation to the E1 settlement expansion project, a controversial plan aimed at facilitating settlement contiguity near Jerusalem. Lior Amihai, executive director of the Israeli watchdog Peace Now, stated that the government had approved the sensitive E1 plan and intended to annex the region. He argued that expelling Palestinian communities, including those in Khan al-Ahmar, was necessary for Israel to annex the entire area.
Muayad Shaaban, a minister in the Palestinian Authority’s Settlement and Wall Resistance Commission, warned that targeting Khan al-Ahmar was part of a strategic project to separate the northern West Bank from the south. Peace Now also condemned the move, describing Smotrich as the “Minister of Expulsion and Annexation” and criticising the decision as revenge against the international community at the expense of a vulnerable population.
