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The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued secret arrest warrants against five Israeli officials, including three politicians and two military personnel, a diplomatic source told Haaretz on Sunday.
The development that would bring to seven the total number of Israeli officials facing ICC arrest warrants, following the November 2024 warrants against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
Haaretz reported a diplomatic source as saying the warrants target two Israeli politicians and two military officials. "The timing of the warrants' issuance is unknown," the source said.
Earlier Israeli media reporting had indicated that ICC prosecutors were considering pursuing cases against Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
The ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant on November 21, 2024, for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed between at least Oct. 8, 2023, and May 20, 2024.
The ICC Pre-Trial Chamber found reasonable grounds to believe both bore criminal responsibility as co-perpetrators for the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts, as well as criminal responsibility as civilian superiors for intentionally directing attacks against the civilian population of Gaza.
The Chamber found reasonable grounds to believe that Netanyahu and Gallant "intentionally and knowingly deprived the civilian population in Gaza of objects indispensable to their survival, including food, water, medicine and medical supplies, as well as fuel and electricity."
It noted that decisions allowing humanitarian assistance were "often conditional" and were "a response to the pressure of the international community or requests by the United States" rather than fulfillment of international humanitarian law obligations.
The warrants were designated as secret to protect witnesses and safeguard investigations, but the Chamber opted to release their existence publicly, given that "conduct similar to that addressed in the warrant of arrest appears to be ongoing" and that disclosure was "in the interest of victims and their families."
The ICC denied a report in Israeli media on Sunday that it had issued new arrest warrants for five Israeli political and military officials for alleged crimes against Palestinians.
ICC spokesperson Oriane Maillet said in a note to journalists that the report, in Israel's Haaretz newspaper, was not accurate, and the court "denies the issuance of new arrest warrants in the situation in the state of Palestine".
The court's 2024 warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant were confirmed only after the Chamber determined that partial disclosure served victims' interests despite the warrants' classified status.
Hungary, which hosted Netanyahu on an official visit, announced it was withdrawing from the Rome Statute following the 2024 warrants, a withdrawal that takes effect one year after notification to the UN Secretary-General.
The Israeli army has killed more than 72,000 people, mostly women and children, and injured over 172,000 in a two-year war in the Gaza Strip since October 2023.
The army continues its attacks despite a ceasefire that took effect on Oct. 10, 2025, killing over 870 people and injuring over 2,540 others, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
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