German Chancellor Olaf Scholz rejects any parallels between Israeli military actions and atrocities of "Hamas" after the decision of the International Criminal Court to bring charges of war crimes against the leaders of Israel and the Palestinian fighters, reported DPA, quoted by BTA.
"The German government is categorically opposed to any attempt to place an equal sign," a spokesman for Scholz told the newspaper "Bild" in a comment to which DPA received advance access.
Yesterday, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, said he wanted arrest warrants issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Galant and leaders of Hamas. The orders relate to war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Israel and the Gaza Strip.
The German government also reports the accusations of the chief prosecutor of the ICC against "Hamas" and the arrest warrants for its leaders, the spokesman said.
"In view of the atrocities committed on October 7, the continued captivity of the hostages and the unrelenting attacks by "Hamas" against Israel, this is quite logical," he added.
"The German government has always argued that Israel has the right to defend itself against the attacks of "Hamas" in accordance with international law," said Chancellor Olaf Scholz. " Against this background, the accusations of the Prosecutor General are serious and must be substantiated,", he added.
The ICC can indict only if states are unwilling or unable to indict a specific serious crime, the German Foreign Ministry's description on the Internet reads.
The US and Israel criticized the move by the ICC. Neither the US nor Israel are parties to the treaty by which the ICC was drawn up.
In the attacks of "Hamas" against Israel on October 7, about 1,200 people were killed and over 250 were taken hostage. The terrorist attack became the reason for Israel's military offensive in Gaza, in which, according to the controlled by "Hamas" health authorities have so far killed more than 35,500 people.