Netanyahu, Gallant will be arrested if they set foot in Canada: Trudeau

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense chief Yoav Gallant will be arrested if they set foot in the North American country in compliance with the International Criminal Court's (ICC) arrest warrants for the Israeli officials.

"First of all, as Canada has always said, it's really important that everyone abide by international law. This is something we've been calling on from the beginning of the conflict," Trudeau said, expressing full support to the warrants, according to Anadolu Agency.

He also stated that Canada is one of the founding members of the ICC and the International Court of Justice.

Replying to a question on the arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant, the Canadian premier said, "We stand up for international law, and we will abide by all the regulations and rulings of the international courts."

He noted the need to find a solution to the genocide in the Gaza Strip. "We need to see aid flowing into people who are facing famine and disease," he said.

Trudeau also called that all hostages be released.

He stressed the importance of a cease-fire and to "get back on track towards a two-state solution, with a peaceful Israel living alongside a peaceful Palestinian state."

"These are the things that Canada has been working on. At the same time, we have to recognise, as Canadians, that it's been very, very difficult for members of different communities in this country," he said, reaffirming Canada's efforts for "peace and stability."

Ireland will arrest Netanyahu following ICC warrant, Canadian PM says.

Meanwhile, Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris said Ireland would be prepared to arrest Netanyahu if he came to the country following the International Criminal Court arrest warrant issued on Thursday.

"Yes absolutely. We support international courts and we apply their warrants," Harris told national broadcaster RTE on Friday when asked if Netanyahu would be arrested if he arrived in Ireland for whatever reason.

The Hague-based ICC announced the arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Gallant and Hamas leader Ibrahim Al-Masri on 21 November "for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed from at least 8 October 2023 until at least 20 May 2024," when ICC prosecutor Karim Khan sought the warrants.

In doing so, it also unanimously rejected Israel's challenges to jurisdiction under articles 18 and 19 of the Rome Statute.

The court said it "found reasonable grounds" to believe that Netanyahu and Gallant "bear criminal responsibility" for "the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts."

The warrants come as Israel's genocidal offensive in the Gaza Strip recently entered its second year, having already killed 44,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children.

The Israeli onslaught has displaced almost the entire population of the territory amid an ongoing and deliberate blockade that has led to severe shortages of food, clean water and medicine, pushing the population to the brink of starvation.