ICC Faces Legal Push to Target Iran Over Oct. 7 Attacks

Two separate legal filings submitted to the International Criminal Court in late 2025 are testing whether The Hague-based tribunal will pursue arrest warrants against Iranian officials and additional Hamas commanders for atrocities committed during and after the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on Israel. Neither petition has received a formal response from the court.

Elliot Malin, president of Stratos Council and a legal expert, filed the first case in September 2025 requesting warrants against two Iranian officials for “crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide committed in Israel and Gaza on and after Oct. 7, 2023,” according to Fox News Digital. Malin argued that the Islamic Republic functions as the principal behind proxy groups operating as agents of the regime. One of the named Iranian officials was killed during the ongoing conflict with the U.S., according to Malin.

The jurisdictional question is complex. Iran is not a party to the Rome Statute, the ICC’s founding treaty. Malin contends the court holds authority because it maintains jurisdiction over Gaza, where the crimes’ effects materialized.

The filing was brought on behalf of Maurice Shnaider, whose niece, Shiri Bibas, and her sons Ariel, four, and Kfir, nine months, were abducted on Oct. 7 and later murdered in captivity, according to Fox News Digital. Shnaider told the outlet he lost five generations of his family “to acts committed with the intent to destroy Jews.” His sister and brother-in-law were burned alive inside their home at Kibbutz Nir Oz that same day.

Malin filed a second petition in December 2025 seeking investigation and arrest warrants for more than a dozen Hamas members. This filing specifically targets crimes committed against Palestinians in Gaza, including the use of civilians as human shields and torture, according to Fox News Digital. “The goal there is to raise light of Hamas’ criminal conduct against Palestinians in Gaza,” Malin said.

These petitions arrive as the ICC navigates institutional turmoil. Former Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan was removed over sexual misconduct allegations, according to Fox News Digital. Before his dismissal, Khan oversaw the 2024 issuance of arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas commander Mohammad Deif. The warrant for Deif was approved despite him having already been killed in an Israeli airstrike.

Washington has escalated its opposition to the tribunal. Earlier this month, Secretary of State Marco Rubio imposed sweeping financial sanctions against the court. “Our message is clear: The United States and the American people are not subject to the jurisdiction of this fake ICC,” Rubio said in a recorded video, according to Fox News Digital.

The Office of the Prosecutor told Fox News Digital it “is actively investigating all crimes committed within the Court’s jurisdiction since 13 June 2014” regarding the Situation in the State of Palestine. The office stated it carries out its mandate independently under the Rome Statute but declined to disclose details of the investigation to protect its integrity and the safety of victims, witnesses, and staff.

Malin noted the court has not responded to either of his filings. He advocates submitting individual cases on behalf of every family that lost relatives on Oct. 7, arguing the attackers’ own statements—telling victims they would continue until “there are no Jews left in Palestine”—demonstrate genocidal intent rather than military objectives, according to Fox News Digital.