The Guardian newspaper published a report prepared by Patrick Wintour, the diplomatic editor, in which he said that the Labour government in Britain fears that the International Criminal Court will ask it to sign an arrest warrant for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in light of the escalating tension in the Middle East.

He said Britain’s support for the arrest warrant comes at a time when Britain has not designated the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organisation. There are concerns in the Foreign Office about the political viability of this position on the Revolutionary Guard Corps.

An arrest warrant was requested against Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant on May 20, along with arrest warrants against Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, Ismail Haniyeh, the head of Hamas’s political bureau who was assassinated in late July while visiting Tehran, and Mohammed Deif, Hamas’s military leader.

In short, what worries 10 Downing Street is the explosive political repercussions if the ICC issues an arrest warrant for Netanyahu, especially given the current heightened tensions in the Middle East.

Khan told the pretrial chamber judges a month ago that the issue of issuing an arrest warrant against Netanyahu was very important. But the chamber judges spent much longer than the three weeks it took to accept Khan’s request for an arrest warrant against Vladimir Putin, the Russian leader, for his role in orchestrating the abduction of children from Ukraine.

This delay occurred because the judges had to evaluate numerous observations made by States, international organizations, victims' representatives and human rights groups.

The Labour government has withdrawn the Conservative case that the ICC prosecutor has no jurisdiction over Palestine.

Khan responded to the memoranda on August 23, saying the issue was of “utmost importance,” noting the catastrophic situation in Gaza, and that Palestine is a party to the International Criminal Court, and that any crimes committed on its territory are subject to the ICC’s jurisdiction.

The newspaper added that the concern in British diplomatic circles is that the anti-Iran parliamentary pressure group will accuse Britain of supporting the wrong priorities if it supports the arrest of the leader of a democratic country, at a time when the “Iranian Revolutionary Guard” is still not banned.

The British government says it is reviewing the status of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps in Britain, as part of a wider review of laws governing state-sponsored terrorism.

Britain's domestic intelligence agency MI5 also said that Iran's backers were responsible for 15 attacks on British soil.

The British Foreign Office has imposed sanctions on members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, but has opposed banning the Guards entirely for fear that Iran could sever diplomatic relations, leaving Britain without an ambassador in Tehran.

In his request for arrest warrants, Khan accused Netanyahu and Galant of committing crimes against humanity “as part of an organized attack against a civilian population and as a state policy.”

Khan has cautiously sought support from the UK's Human Rights Foundation as he called for Netanyahu's arrest, arguing specifically that the Israeli prime minister should be held accountable for crimes committed by Israel in Palestine.

In a sign of growing tension, NGOs have increased pressure on the government to do more about Britain's obligations to apply international law in Gaza.

A group of 15 NGOs issued a statement expressing “deep disappointment” at Britain’s abstention in the UN General Assembly vote on the decision of the other major international court, the International Court of Justice, issued last July, which requires Israel to withdraw from the occupied territories within 12 months. The resolution passed the General Assembly on Wednesday by 124 votes to 14, but Britain was among 45 countries that abstained. The NGOs reminded Britain that the ICJ ruling obliges all states not to provide assistance or support to the situation created by Israel’s existence. Britain says it supported the ICJ ruling on the Israeli occupation of Palestine, but does not believe the latest draft resolution will advance the cause of peace. Meanwhile, two NGOs, the Global Legal Action Network and Al-Haq, which are locked in a long-running legal battle with the government over arms sales to Israel, have written to Foreign Secretary David Lammy, warning him of criminal liability for continuing to sell parts for F-35 fighter jets that Israel could use in the Gaza war. A third group has written to Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds, urging him to suspend the current UK-Israel trade agreement and reconsider plans to sign a new one. They say the move is necessary in light of the ICJ’s order for all states not to aid or support the Israeli occupation.