Australia respects ICC’s independence after Netanyahu arrest warrant request, government says

The Albanese government says it respects the international criminal court's "important" and "independent" role in upholding the law after its chief prosecutor requested arrest warrants for Hamas and Israeli officials for war crimes and crimes against humanity, including the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.

A foreign affairs spokesperson said it was not appropriate to comment on matters before the court but added that Israel must comply with international laws, noting "every country is bound by the same fundamental rules" while defending itself.

"Australia respects the ICC and the important role it has in upholding international law," the spokesperson said. "The decision on whether to issue arrest warrants is a matter for the Court in the independent exercise of its functions."

The Labor cabinet minister Chris Bowen made the point more bluntly on Tuesday, telling reporters "international law must always be observed and nobody gets a free pass for that".

The Coalition on Tuesday criticised the Albanese government for not backing comments from the US president, Joe Biden, who said he rejected claims that Israel was committing genocide.

Bowen described the criticism from Peter Dutton as "highly irresponsible", saying the opposition leader was seeking to "drag this through a domestic political debate".

It comes as the British ICC prosecutor Karim Khan said on Monday his office had applied to the world court's pre-trial chamber for the arrest warrants for Netanyahu, his defence minister, Yoav Gallant, along with the senior Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif and Ismail Haniyeh. A panel of three judges would consider the evidence and determine if the proceedings can move forward.