Canada would arrest Israel’s PM Netanyahu according to ICC warrants, says PM Carney

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would be arrested per the arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) if he were to visit Canada, Prime Minister Mark Carney affirmed last Friday.

Carney made the remarks during a podcast interview with British journalist Mishal Husain, where he discussed a wide range of topics, including his motivation to run for office, the lessons he drew from U.S. President Donald Trump, and his policy plans concerning Israel and Palestinian statehood.

The end goal “is a free and viable Palestinian state living side by side, (in) peace and security, with the state of Israel,” said Carney.

This is the reason why he recognized the “State of Palestine” last month, Carney said.

#urgent
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney: We will arrest Netanyahu if he visits Canada pic.twitter.com/ej0aiF0AmY

— mahmoud khalil (@zorba222) October 20, 2025

The Canadian leader's announcement coincided with similar statements from the prime ministers of the United Kingdom and Australia, issued ahead of the UN General Assembly in New York.

“We did this because the prospect was receding as opposed to viewing it as any sort of panacea, game changer, fundamentally immediately leading to the outcome that we and others want,” he told Husain.

Carney accused the Netanyahu government of taking action that was “explicitly designed to end any possibility of a state of Palestine in violation of the UN charter and going against Canadian government policy of whatever political stripe since 1947.”

Today, Canada recognises the State of Palestine. pic.twitter.com/zhumVJRBfe

— Mark Carney (@MarkJCarney) September 21, 2025

“Justin Trudeau said that Canada would honor the International Criminal Court arrest warrants, i.e. Benjamin Netanyahu would be arrested if he came to Canada,” Husain noted, before asking Carney, “Does that stand under your leadership?”

“Yes,” Carney replied. “You’d be prepared to do that?” Husain checked. “Yes,” the prime minister affirmed.

The statement drew strong criticism from Netanyahu’s political advisor, Ophir Falk, who, on Saturday, told the Canadian news outlet The Globe and Mail that he'd “hoped that after Canada endorsed President Trump’s Middle East 20-Point Peace Plan, Prime Minister Carney would retract his policy of appeasing terrorism and betraying Canada’s traditional ally.”

Falk urged Carney to “welcome Prime Minister Netanyahu, the leader of the lone Jewish state and only democracy in the Middle East, to Canada.”

Some of the few Western leaders to unequivocally welcome a visit by Netanyahu to their countries, despite the ICC arrest warrants, were U.S. President Trump and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

In November 2024, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Israel’s former defense minister, Yoav Gallant, over charges of “criminal responsibility” for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Israel in its war against Hamas.

The court also issued arrest warrants for Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Deif, and Ismail Haniyeh over the Hamas' Oct . 7, 2023, invasion and massacre in Israel, during which about 1,200 people – mostly civilians –were killed and 251 were taken hostage.

All three terror chiefs have since been eliminated by Israeli strikes.