ICC-wanted Benjamin Netanyahu allowed to visit Poland
15 January 2025
In a blow to international justice, the Polish prime minister Donald Tusk has assured his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu safe passage to attend the 80th anniversary commemoration of the Allied liberation of the Nazi extermination camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau on 27 January. It's not clear yet if Netanyahu will attend the commemoration.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) wants Netanyahu for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity, making the invitation a diplomatic and legal minefield.
But also domestically, it's a telling move for Donald Tusk, who became PM on a promise to restore independent justice systems. His deputy minister of foreign affairs, Andrzej Szejna, criticised the previous government for "violating international law by ignoring international court rulings." And yet, with this move, Tusk's government seemingly copies the previous government, which had long-running judicial disputes with the EU.
 | Miroslawa van der Boom Is the ICC now being reduced to a paper tiger? Poland is not the first country to challenge ICC's warrants. A similar situation occurred in 2017 when South Africa failed to arrest Sudan's then-president, Omar al-Bashir, when he visited the country. More recently, Mongolia didn't arrest ICC-wanted Russian president Vladimir Putin in September last year. But this time is different. It's a highly contentious case, and it's a major European country backtracking on its commitment to international justice. If it's Poland now, what country is next? This move sets a dangerous precedent which could encourage more countries to ignore those warrants. Already now, France and Hungary indicated they might scorn the warrant should Netanyahu ever visit the two countries. It may also end up firing back on European countries – and Poland in particular – which rightfully would not hesitate to arrest Putin. The refusal to do the same with Netanyahu will fuel allegations further that Western countries only care about international law when it's convenient for them. |
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