Gaza (MNN) — Toothless arrest warrants sought by the International Criminal Court cause problems for Israel abroad.
Earlier this week, the ICC’s top prosecutor accused top Israeli and Hamas leaders of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
“It’s a moral equivalency issue that’s really not fair,” Uncharted Ministries’ Tom Doyle says.
“Hamas is a terrorist group. They tried to commit genocide; Israel goes in to get Hamas, and now they’re accused of war crimes.”
The United States immediately condemned the ICC announcement, stating:
We reject the prosecutor’s equivalence of Israel with Hamas. It is shameful. Hamas is a brutal terrorist organization that carried out the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust and is still holding dozens of innocent people hostage, including Americans.
Three judges will review the charges and decide whether to pursue a case. Even if ICC judges issue arrest warrants, Israel’s Prime Minister and Defense Minister won’t face immediate prosecution. However, they could be arrested during travel to an ICC member nation.
“There are some nations where that could happen to Israeli leaders, so they need to be careful,” Doyle says.
Residential buildings destroyed during the first week of intensive bombing by Israeli aircraft.
(Wikimedia Commons)
Meanwhile, conditions in Gaza continue to deteriorate. After six months of war, believers have little choice but to leave.
“They’re tired; many people are saying, ‘We’re finished. We can’t live this way anymore,’” Doyle says.
“I was just talking with a Christian leader in Gaza, and he said that there were 900 known Christians in Gaza; now it’s down to 700. They expect that it will be cut in half, at least to 450.”
Pray for the war in Gaza to end. “Pray [for] a massive heart change, that the Gospel will spread through Gaza, and people can see there’s a better way,” Doyle requests.
Support Gospel workers in the region through Uncharted here. “We hope when it’s safe to go in, and the war’s over, that the Gaza Baptist Church will be rebuilt and be a beacon of light in the Gaza Strip,” Doyle says.
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of Mohammed Ibrahim/Unsplash.
