Shameful: Humza Yousaf slams David Cameron for threatening ICC over Israel probe

Former Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf has heavily criticised David Cameron after Middle East Eye revealed on Monday that the former UK foreign secretary privately threatened to defund and withdraw from the International Criminal Court if it issued arrest warrants for Israeli leaders.

Cameron, then foreign secretary in Rishi Sunak’s Conservative government, made the threat in April 2024 in a heated phone call with Karim Khan, the British chief prosecutor of the court.

"It is shameful that Lord Cameron allegedly threatened the ICC for having the audacity to do their job," Yousaf, who was the Scottish first minister when Cameron made the threat, told MEE on Tuesday in a significant intervention.

"He should immediately come clean and apologise if this was indeed the case."

Cameron, a former British prime minister, was appointed foreign secretary by then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in November 2023.

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Yousaf, a member of the Scottish National Party, served as Scotland's first minister from March 2023 to May 2024. 

He strongly opposed the Conservative government's support for Israel's bombardment of Gaza and called for an arms embargo on Israel in February 2024.

'Hypocrisy'

Members of his wife's family were in Gaza when the war began in October 2023.

Yousaf told MEE on Tuesday: "These revelations show that the UK Government, under both the Conservatives and Labour, are complicit in the atrocities we are witnessing in Gaza."

'It is shameful that Lord Cameron allegedly threatened the ICC for having the audacity to do their job'

- Humza Yousaf, former Scottish first minister

MEE reported on Monday that Cameron told the ICC prosecutor over the phone on 23 April 2024 that the UK would “defund the court and withdraw from the Rome Statute” if the ICC issued warrants for Israeli leaders.

Khan replied that “if this were to occur then we would have to accept that the rules-based system would be dead”.

MEE revealed details of the call based on information from a number of sources – including former staff in Khan’s office familiar with the conversation and who have seen the minutes of the meeting.

Yousaf said: "Successive UK governments, including when Lord Cameron was prime minister, would often publicly lecture other governments on the importance of international law, while it seems privately content to undermine the equal application of the law.

"That is hypocrisy of the highest order."

Cameron told Khan applying for warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant would be “like dropping a hydrogen bomb”.

He said Khan was “on the brink of making a huge mistake" and that "the world is not ready for this". 

According to MEE’s sources, the foreign secretary spoke aggressively and repeatedly shouted over Khan, who had to ask to be able to complete his points.

"The ICC should operate free from political pressure and influence," Yousaf told MEE. 

"Given the scenes of starvation, death and destruction we are witnessing in Gaza, we should be applauding the ICC for not bowing to pressure from those who publicly purport to support international human rights law, but work behind the scenes to undermine it."

Yousaf's criticism of Cameron, who currently sits as a Conservative peer in the House of Lords, comes as several British MPs criticised the former prime minister. 

Approached by MEE for a response to the exchange with Cameron, Karim Khan said: “I have no comment to make at this time.”

The British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office declined to comment and Cameron did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

middleeasteye.net