ICC Denies Issuing New Sealed Warrants for Israeli Officials; Prosecutor's Application Before Pre-Trial Chamber

The International Criminal Court's official spokesperson Oriane Maillet stated on May 17–18, 2026 that the Haaretz report about the issuance of new arrest warrants was 'not accurate' — specifically denying that new warrants had been formally issued for Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, Settlement Minister Orit Strock, or two senior IDF officials. This contradicts both the original Haaretz report (citing a 'diplomatic source') and a WAFA (Palestinian news agency) report claiming five sealed warrants had been issued. Legal analysts clarified the critical procedural distinction: the ICC acting prosecutor's office may have submitted an *application* for warrants to Pre-Trial Chamber I — which is reported to be the case — but the three-judge chamber has not yet formally *issued* them, a separate act. Separately, Israel has abandoned its formal defense in the ICC case following the May 13, 2026 ICC Appeals Chamber ruling (3–2) rejecting Israel's jurisdictional challenge. The only publicly confirmed active ICC warrants against Israeli officials remain those issued in November 2024 against Prime Minister Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Gallant for war crimes including starvation as a method of warfare and persecution. The US, which previously sanctioned ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan (on administrative leave) and nine ICC judges, is expected to oppose any additional warrants through economic and diplomatic pressure.