Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich says the International Criminal Court prosecutor has requested an arrest warrant against him — a dramatic claim that immediately triggered threats of retaliation against a Palestinian Bedouin community in the occupied West Bank.

Smotrich accused the Palestinian Authority of driving the case and declared Israel would move to evacuate Khan al-Ahmar, a long-contested village east of Jerusalem that has become a flashpoint in the battle over Israeli settlements and annexation.

Smotrich Turns Legal Threat Into Political Offensive

Speaking during a televised statement on his X account, Smotrich described the ICC as an “antisemitic court” and said Israel would not submit to what he called politically motivated pressure from The Hague.

“Immediately upon the conclusion of my remarks here, we will sign an order to evacuate Khan al-Ahmar,” he said, calling the alleged warrant request “a declaration of war”.

The office of the ICC prosecutor declined to confirm or deny the claim, saying it could not comment on “media speculation” surrounding possible arrest warrants.

Khan al-Ahmar Back in the Crosshairs

The threatened evacuation has sent alarm through Palestinian officials and Israeli rights groups. More than 750 Palestinians live in Khan al-Ahmar, a strategically sensitive community surrounded by Israeli settlements in the central West Bank.

Palestinian officials warned the move could sever the northern and southern West Bank by accelerating Israeli control around Jerusalem. The area sits near the controversial E1 corridor, long viewed internationally as a critical test of whether a future Palestinian state remains geographically viable.

Israeli watchdog group Peace Now accused the government of exploiting the ICC confrontation to deepen annexation efforts.

Pressure Mounts After Netanyahu Warrant

The latest confrontation comes less than two years after the ICC issued arrest warrants against Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes linked to the Gaza conflict.

Smotrich, a hard-line advocate for annexing the West Bank, has become one of the most polarising figures in Israel’s coalition government. Critics warn the Khan al-Ahmar threat risks inflaming tensions across the occupied territories at a moment when regional pressure on Israel is already intensifying.

For Palestinians living in the village, the diplomatic clash now carries an immediate and existential consequence: the possibility of losing their homes altogether.

Israel far-right finance minister says ICC prosecutor seeks arrest warrant against him

One more Israeli warmonger calling out, the sky is falling, look, antisemitism.

Ben Gvir is next.