PA urges ICC to issue arrest warrant for Ben-Gvir’s celebration of Palestinian boy’s murder

The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has condemned Israel’s extreme far-right Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, for his support for and celebration of the killing of a 13-year-old Palestinian boy by Israeli occupation forces. The ministry has called for the International Criminal Court to issue an arrest warrant for Ben-Gvir after he gloated publicly about the murder of Rami Hamdan Al-Halhouli and incitement to commit further crimes.

An Israeli soldier opened fire on the Palestinian boy after he threw a firework up in the air in the narrow streets of the Shuafat refugee camp in occupied East Jerusalem. Al-Halhouli was rushed to the Hadassah Medical Centre, where he was pronounced dead. According to a resident of the refugee camp, the firework was not aimed at Israeli officers and did not pose a threat to them.

In his response on X, Ben-Gvir “saluted” the officer who killed the boy, adding, “This is exactly how you should act against terrorists – with determination and precision.”

The PA ministry pointed to Ben-Gvir’s open endorsement of the killer and his claims that he does not need to be investigated, and described this as conclusive evidence for any country that wants to understand the political dynamics of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right coalition. The Israeli government not only incited the killing of Palestinians without any reason, even children, but also celebrates it and provides protection to criminals and murderers.

Moreover, added the ministry, it’s also proof that any investigations conducted by the occupying state of incidents involving its own security services are mere formalities and devoid of genuine legal scrutiny. They simply serve as a way to avoid any international pressure surrounding the ongoing atrocities committed against Palestinian civilians.

The Israeli officer is being investigated for fatally shooting the boy, who Israeli forces said aimed fireworks at them at Shuafat refugee camp. According to Haaretz, Ben-Gvir slammed the investigation as “shameful” and “a scandal” and accused the unit investigating police misconduct of “destroying Israel’s deterrence and harming our soldiers.”

The right-wing extremist added that, “The hero officer, together with his friends, did an exemplary job.”

Since the 1967 Middle East war, Israel has occupied the West Bank of the River Jordan, which the Oslo Accords signed by the occupation state determined will be the core of an independent state of Palestine. Instead, Israel has built huge settlements across the territory including occupied East Jerusalem, which are illegal under international law.

Israel has stepped up its military raids in the West Bank, and protected even more armed, illegal settler attacks on Palestinians and their properties since the military offensive against the Palestinians in Gaza began in October. The UN says that at least 358 Palestinians in the occupied territory have been killed since 7 October, a quarter of them children. The number of Palestinians killed in Gaza since 7 October has already passed the 31,000 mark, most of them children and women.

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