Former Mossad chief Yossi Cohen threatened the former Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Fatou Bensouda, to dissuade her from investigating Israeli war crimes and crimes against humanity in the occupied Palestinian territories.

An unsourced source revealed that Cohen served as Netanyahu’s “unofficial envoy,” and that “Bensouda briefed a small group of senior ICC officials on Cohen’s attempts to influence her, amid concerns about the ongoing and increasingly threatening nature of his behavior.”

It noted that "three sources are aware of the official reports submitted by Bensouda to the court in this regard."

The sources explained that Cohen exerted pressure on Bensouda on several occasions, amounting to threatening her security and the personal security of her family, in an attempt to dissuade her from proceeding with a criminal investigation into war crimes and crimes against humanity in the occupied Palestinian territories, before the International Criminal Court.

Cohen told Bensouda: “You have to help us and let us take care of you; you don’t want to get involved in things that could jeopardize your security or the security of your family.”

The Mossad also showed great interest in Bensouda's family members, and obtained copies of secret recordings of her husband. Israeli officials then tried to use these materials to discredit the prosecutor; It reported that this was part of a secret “war” launched by the Israeli intelligence services against the International Criminal Court for more than 10 years.

According to legal experts and former ICC officials, Mossad's efforts to threaten or pressure Bensouda could amount to crimes against the administration of justice under Article 70 of the Rome Statute, the treaty on which the court was established.

In this context, the office of the current International Criminal Prosecutor, Karim Khan, confirmed that he was exposed to “several forms of threats and communications that could be considered attempts to unjustifiably influence his activities.”