The arrest warrants from the international criminal court (ICC) for the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the defence minister Yoav Gallant, and the Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif, represent a historic milestone in the fight for accountability over war crimes. Hamas’s October massacre of 1,200 Israelis was a shocking violation of international humanitarian law, justifying prosecution. However, with many of Hamas’s senior commanders killed in Israeli military strikes, courtroom justice may remain elusive.

For Israel’s leadership, the ICC’s action ends decades of perceived impunity and challenges what critics describe as Israel’s longstanding “shield of immunity”. There were predictable reactions: Mr Netanyahu condemned the ICC’s decision as “antisemitic”, while Hamas praised the warrants against Israel’s leaders as an “important historical precedent”. The ICC’s jurisdiction over Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem........

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