Poland confirms Netanyahu will be arrested if he attends 80th Auschwitz liberation ceremony

Netanyahu already indicated he would not attend the event, given Poland’s earlier statements in support of executing the arrest warrant.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Wladyslaw Bartoszewski confirmed that if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz next month, he will be arrested in accordance with the ICC arrest warrant.

Bartoszewski made his remarks to the Polish economic and legal newspaper Rzeczpospolita regarding preparations for the ceremony on January 27th.

On Friday, Netanyahu already indicated he would not attend the event, given Poland’s earlier statements in support of executing the arrest warrants, and that Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar would attend instead.

In November, Netanyahu, along with former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, were charged by the ICC for crimes relating to the war in Gaza, and arrest warrants were issued.

Although the United States, Hungary, and Argentina resolved not to execute the arrest warrants, many other countries, even those that disagreed with them, said they would have to arrest Netanyahu or Gallant if they entered their countries.

Shortly after the ICC arrest warrant was issued, the Polish Deputy Foreign Minister said, “We are committed to respecting the decisions of the International Criminal Court in The Hague.”

Israel has appealed the ICC arrest warrants against Netanyahu and former Foreign Minister Yoav Gallant, arguing that prosecutor Karim Khan had insufficient evidence and committed errors during his investigation and that the ICC has no jurisdiction over Israel.

Canada was one of the first countries to say it would comply with the ICC warrant and arrest Netanyahu and Gallant.

“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,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters in the Toronto area.

Trudeau pointed out that Canada was one of the founding members of the ICC, and added, “We stand up for international law, and we will abide by all the regulations and rulings of the international courts.”