The International Criminal Court (ICC) announced today that it has completely halted the prosecution of Ismail Haniya, of the former political leader of Hamas who was killed in Iran on July 31 in an attack attributed to Israel.

The Office of the Prosecutor of this court, which requested in May arrest warrants against Israeli officials – including the prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu – and of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, withdrew its request “due to the change in circumstances brought about by Haniya’s death,” according to an ICC document.

Judges decided to “completely halt” the prosecution of the former political leader of Hamas, who had been accused along with two other senior figures of the organization of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip and Israel during the attack on the 7 October.

The prosecutor of the ICC Karim Khan had sought arrest warrants in May for Netanyahu, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallad, Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip Yahya Shinuwar, Ismail Haniya and Mohammed Deif, head of the al-Qassam Brigades, the Islamist group’s armed wing of this movement.

Charges against Hamas leaders include “extermination as a crime against humanity”, “hostage as a war crime”, “rape and other forms of sexual violence” and “torture”.

THE Netanyahu and Gallant they are accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip, such as “the fact of deliberate starvation of civilians”, “extermination” and the fact of “deliberately carrying out attacks against the civilian population”.

Ismail Haniya was killed in Tehran in an attack attributed to Israel, which has not claimed responsibility. Hamas appointed Yahya Sinwar as his replacement.

Iran and its allies threatened to respond to the killing on July 31, sparking fears of a regional conflagration. On July 13, a strike in the southern part of the Gaza Strip killed Mohammed Deif, according to Israel.

The ICC, based in The Hague, was established in 2002 to investigate the most serious crimes, notably genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The court allowed other countries, as well as legal experts and human rights groups, to present legal arguments in the case, delaying the judges’ decision.

In August, the ICC prosecutor’s office urged the international court to act “urgently”, saying it was “legally established” that the court had jurisdiction “in this case”.