Metropolitan Police say they referred Israel-Gaza war crimes cases to ICC
The Metropolitan Police’s War Crimes Team has shared a “small number of referrals” with the International Criminal Court (ICC) since the Hamas-led attack on Israel last October and and the ensuing war on Gaza.
The War Crimes Team has reviewed around 170 referrals related to the ongoing conflict since 7 October 2023 and has shared information with the international court “as part of the UK’s international obligations”, a police spokesperson told Middle East Eye.
“We will not be commenting on the specific nature of each and every referral, but each one is reviewed in line with War Crimes/Crimes Against Humanity Referral Guidelines, jointly agreed by police and the Crown Prosecution Service," the spokesperson said.
“At this time, there is no UK-based investigation into any matters relating to this particular conflict."
The Met’s comments come after the Ministry of Defence said it would consider sharing war crimes evidence with the court that Royal Air Force spy planes may have gathered while flying over Gaza over the past year.
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The ICC is currently investigating alleged war crimes committed in the occupied Palestinian territories since 2014, including events following the 7 October Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel.
The Met has said that, under the Rome Statute that established the ICC, its War Crimes Team is obligated to support any investigations by the court that could involve British nationals.
Last December, posters appeared in Arabic and English at British airports, urging anyone who had been in Israel or the Palestinian territories and had witnessed or been a victim of terrorism, war crimes or crimes against humanity to report to the police.
In January, the BBC reported that 73 out of 92 referrals related to the conflict at that time - approximately 79 percent - had been made against Israel.
The Met declined on Friday to offer a similar breakdown of all referrals filed during the conflict.
'Litmus test'
Among those in the UK that have shared evidence with the Met is the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP), which has submitted three criminal complaints to the force in relation to the war.
One of the complaints, filed in January and supplemented by a second complaint in May, argued that senior British politicians, including five ministers, were criminally liable for aiding and abetting alleged Israeli war crimes.
Along with the complaints, the organisation has handed over hundreds of pages of evidence, including eyewitness accounts from people in Gaza - among them 19 medical professionals - as well as photographic evidence.
Zaki Sarraf, the legal officer for the ICJP, told MEE that it was right for the Met to refer cases to the ICC.
"But this doesn't excuse it from its legal duty to investigate and prosecute potential war criminals," Sarraf said.
"Dual nationals serving in the IDF and British government officials complicit in war crimes must be dealt with under domestic UK proceedings."
He also said that while the police force has handed over evidence to the court, the Ministry of Defence has yet to do so.
"This is a litmus test: will the UK uphold justice without fear or favour, regardless of the perpetrator? Or will political alliances be held in higher regard than Palestinian lives?” Sarraf said.
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