Hostage families sue ICC prosecutor in Jerusalem for alleged Hamas support

The families of three Israeli hostages being held in Gaza are suing the International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, for his alleged support for the Hamas terrorists who kidnapped their loved ones, the Shurat Hadin-Israel Law Centre announced on Wednesday.

The 20-million-shekel (A$9.32 million) lawsuit filed with the Jerusalem District Court accuses Khan of levelling false accusations against the State of Israel, as well as providing services to terror groups, it said.

The lawsuit was brought by the parents of Hamas captive Eitan Mor, the brother of captive Omri Miran and the mother of hostage Avinatan Or.

They argued that Khan’s refusal to issue arrest warrants for additional Hamas and Islamic Jihad leaders, particularly those living in Qatar and other Arab nations, had led to a situation where 50 hostages are still held.

The purpose of the lawsuit is to have Khan pay “for his failure to pursue Hamas terrorists and for going after Israel for war crimes allegations, aiding and abetting Hamas and thus being responsible for the situation of hostages still being kept in captivity,” Nitsana Darshan-Leitner, the president of Shurat Hadin-Israel Law Center, told JNS on Wednesday.

“It’s also to deter the next chief prosecutor, the one who will take over, because Karim Khan is on leave. Whoever replaces him needs to take action against Hamas in order to rescue the hostages,” she said. “Hamas has to be destroyed and Khan is doing exactly the opposite. He does not take any legal action against them and by going after Israel, he is giving legitimacy to Hamas and legitimacy for them to keep holding the hostages.”

Darshan-Leiter said that this is the first such case filed against Khan. “We are going after him personally, because nothing moves in the [International Criminal] Court without preliminary steps by the chief prosecutor. He is the one who needs to initiate an investigation and bring charges against Hamas leaders,” she said.

Mor told JNS on Wednesday, “We can see from day one of this war that the ICC is against Israel.” He added, “Israel was attacked by Hamas and instead of standing with us, the ICC is fighting Israel while my own son is still there in captivity.”

Mor is the co-founder of the Tikva Forum, an alternative to the larger Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which is opposed to the idea of a ceasefire deal at any cost and believes that only military pressure will lead to their loved ones’ release.

“This is not about money, it’s about Israeli honor. I want the world to see that this is what will happen to whoever wants to stand against us while Israel is fighting Hamas,” Mor told JNS.

Eitan, the eldest of eight children, was working as a security guard at the Supernova music festival near Kibbutz Re’im on Oct. 7, 2023. According to Mor, Eitan saved dozens of people before being abducted by Hamas.

The hostage’s father said the last sign of life he received from his son dated back five months ago, in March 2025, and came from Israeli intelligence, who confirmed that Eitan was alive.

In May 2024, Khan announced that he would request arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for crimes against humanity over conduct in Gaza.

The Hague-based tribunal moved to issue the two warrants in November.

While Khan initially also requested warrants for Hamas terrorist leaders Ismail Haniyeh, Yahya Sinwar and Mohammed Deif, the proceedings were terminated after they were eliminated by the Israeli army. Khan has not asked for the arrest of additional Hamas terrorists since.

Meanwhile,  Khan has taken indefinite leave pending the outcome of an internal investigation of allegations that he repeatedly assaulted a Malaysian colleague in several countries and had urged her not to pursue charges because they might hinder his investigation of Israel.

Some have raised questions about whether he requested the warrants to deliberately overshadow the allegations against him, which had come to light only weeks earlier. Khan’s decision in May 2024 to cancel a trip to Israel and Gaza raised further questions about his impartiality.

Akiva Van Koningsveld, Amelie Botbol/JNS