ISRAEL sought to manage the fallout today after a request by the chief prosecutor of the world’s top war crimes court for arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas leaders, a move supported by three European countries, including key ally France.

Belgium, Slovenia and France each said on Monday that they backed the decision by International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor Karim Khan, who accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his defence minister and three Hamas leaders of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip and Israel.

While no-one faces imminent arrest, the announcement deepens Israel’s global isolation at over its brutal destruction of Gaza and the mass killings of civilians in its war on Hamas.