Netanyahu invited to Germany in 'overt defiance' of ICC warrant, says Israel
Germany's next chancellor has invited Benjamin Netanyahu to the country in defiance of an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant, according to the Israeli prime minister's office.
Netanyahu's office said he had a "warm conversation" with Friedrich Merz, the leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), after the party won the most votes in Germany's national election on Sunday.
"Chancellor-designate Merz thanked the Prime Minister for the conversation and said that he would invite him to make an official visit to Germany, in overt defiance of the scandalous International Criminal Court decision to label the Prime Minister a war criminal," the prime minister's office said.
Merz confirmed on Monday that he had invited Netanyahu for a visit.
"I think it is a completely absurd idea that an Israeli prime minister cannot visit the Federal Republic of Germany,” he said during a press conference.
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He added that he told the Israeli leader by phone "that we would find ways and means for him to visit Germany and leave again without being arrested".
In November, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, his former defence minister.
The two were accused of "the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts" during Israel's ongoing war on Gaza, which began following the Hamas-led attacks of 7 October 2023.
All 124 members of the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the ICC, are now compelled to arrest the two Israeli leaders and hand them over to the court. Germany is amongst the signatories.
Both Gallant and Netanyahu have avoided travelling to Europe or making any stopovers there en route to the United States, which is not a signatory to the Rome Statute.
The ICC does not have enforcement powers, instead relying on the cooperation of member states to arrest and surrender suspects.
The outgoing German government, led by the Social Democratic Party (SPD), initially hinted that it would likely comply with the warrant, with Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock stating: "The German government abides by the law because nobody is above the law."
However, a government spokesperson later said that they had "difficulty imagining" that Germany would ever detain the Israeli premier on its territory.
Gideon Saar, Israel's foreign minister, also congratulated Merz, saying: "I am convinced that, as a friend of Israel, you will strengthen and deepen the relationship between the people of Germany and the people of Israel."
Merz has indicated that he will continue German arms sales to Israel unrestricted, after they were briefly blocked over fears that weapons may be used on civilian targets and in breach of international humanitarian law.
In October 2023, when asked whether Germany should provide asylum to Palestinians from Gaza, Merz said: "We already have enough young antisemitic men in the country."
The CDU won 28.5 percent of the vote, while the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party achieved its best-ever result, coming second with 20.8 percent.
The CDU is expected to go into coalition with the outgoing SPD, which received 16.4 percent of the vote.
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