Middle East Eye: ICC could seek arrest warrant for Israel's Bezalel Smotrich

IN THE PRESS - An exclusive from the Middle East Eye  reports that the prosecutor’s office at the International Criminal Court last month filed a secret arrest warrant application for Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. The application accuses him of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. Specific charges include forced displacement, persecution and apartheid, which, if approved, would be the first ever warrant issue for the crime of apartheid. Middle East Eye reports that an evidence review took place last week for the possibility of two more warrant applications, including one for National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, but they have yet to be filed. If judges approve the arrest warrant application, Smotrich would be the third Israeli politician targeted by the ICC, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant.

It comes after the UN’s accusations of war crimes against Israel published in a separate report on Monday. The Saudi paper Arab News headlines on this. The UN criticised the treatment of Israeli prisoners by Hamas but focused on Israel’s retaliatory campaign in Gaza since October 2023, which has killed more than 70,000 people, most of which appear to be "unlawful". The body urged Israel to take all measures necessary to prevent genocidal acts in Gaza. It also warned that Israel’s repeated offenses in Gaza and the West Bank amount to possibly ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people.

In the US, Donald Trump agreed to drop his family’s $10b lawsuit against the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) as part of a what the Washington Post calls "a highly unusual agreement". That agreement would create a $1.8 billion fund to compensate those who claim they were wronged by the Biden administration. It has been described as an anti-weaponisation fund with limited oversight and outside of normal processes for negotiating legal claims against the government. For the Washington Post, it is "by far the most sweeping tool the president has aimed at financially rewarding supporters and political allies." The Washington Post's editors say that if this fund stands, it will "become a template for all future American presidents to shower financial benefits on friends and allies without accountability". Worse, the fund will pay out for two years before it ceases to exist right after the 2028 election, which means Democrats will never get control of the money. The Daily Beast unveils the "jaw-dropping" details of the fund – Trump will have considerable authority over the five-member commission, which can be removed without cause at any moment. While Trump himself cannot benefit from the fund, entities tied to him can benefit. A citizens' ethics organisation calls it the "one of the single most corrupt acts in American history."

Finally, let's end with London’s Chelsea Flower Show. The Daily Mail reports that King Charles and Camilla met with avid gardener Sir David Beckham ahead of the five-day flower and garden extravaganza. They collaborated on the Curious Garden, a garden which will encourage Brits to discover the joy of gardening and the vital contribution of plants. The royals were present for the unveiling of the Sir David Rose, a white flower named for Beckham and chosen by his daughter Harper. Kate Moss was also present for the show as she has a rose named after her. This year – for only the second time in the flower show’s 113-year-old history – garden gnomes are allowed. Celebrities like Sir David and Queen guitarist Sir Brian May had their own garden gnomes painted. The celebrity gnomes will be auctioned off for charity. At the Chelsea Flower Show, you might say, there’s no place like gnome!

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