Furious George Clooney called White House to blast Biden for calling wife Amal's arrest warrant for Netanyahu 'outrageous'
7 June 2024, 11:41 | Updated: 7 June 2024, 11:44
George Clooney reportedly called a senior White House aide to complain about US President Joe Biden’s criticism of arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which Amal had signed off on.
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Amal Clooney, a prominent human rights lawyer, played a significant role in providing legal assistance with the arrest warrants sought by the ICC for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Hamas leaders accused of committing war crimes in Gaza.
Clooney was most upset by Biden’s claim that the warrants are ‘outrageous,’ according to the Washington Post, which first reported the news.
Read more: British-Israeli hostage Nadav Popplewell dies in Gaza after being seized by Hamas on October 7
The actor was also concerned about legislation recently passed in the House of Representatives to sanction the ICC. He worried that sanctions would harm his wife and potentially lead to her being deported.
The bill is unlikely to become law, with Democrats calling the approach “overly broad” and the White House saying it is overreach.
The row comes as the Biden reelection campaign promotes a June fundraising event at which donors can meet Clooney, former President Barack Obama, and Julia Roberts.
The campaign denied any concerns about Clooney cancelling the appearance and still plans to attend. The star has previously held fundraisers for Hilary Clinton and Barack Obama at his home in Los Angeles.
Karim Khan, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, asked Amal to help review evidence of suspected war crimes.
Khan seeks to charge Netanyahu, Gallant, Hamas leader Yehiya Sinwar and two other top Hamas leaders with war crimes and crimes against humanity.
What's the 'relevance' of the ICC issuing an arrest warrant for Netanyahu?
“I support the historic step that the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has taken to bring justice to victims of atrocities in Israel and Palestine,” she said in a statement after the warrants were announced.
The President is a strong defender of Israel and released a statement in response to the warrants saying:
“Whatever this prosecutor might imply, there is no equivalence — none — between Israel and Hamas. We will always stand with Israel against threats to its security.”
