Germany said Wednesday it will abide by an International Criminal Court arrest warrant and detain Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should he step foot on German soil.

The ICC on Monday issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Israel Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on charges of war crimes in its military response to Iranian-backed Hamas' Oct. 7 terrorist attack. The ICC also issued arrest warrants Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, its military leader Muhammad Deif, and its Qatar-based political leader Ismail Haniyeh on charges of war crimes.

A dramatic appeal written in German and English and posted Tuesday on X by Ron Prosor, Israel's ambassador to Germany was rebuffed by the administration of Prime Minister Olaf Scholz, the Jerusalem Post reported.

"This is outrageous!" Prosor wrote. "The German 'Staatsräson' is now being put to the test – no ifs or buts. This contrasts with the weak statements we hear from some institutions and political actors. The public statement that Israel has the right to self-defense loses credibility if our hands are tied as soon as we defend ourselves."

Staatsräson is the German word that refers to Germany's pledge to ensure that Israel's security is part of its national security and interests, the Post reported. Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel declared during her 2008 Knesset speech that Israel is part of Germany's state of being.

"The Chief Prosecutor [of the ICC] equates a democratic government with Hamas, thereby demonizing and delegitimizing Israel, and the Jewish people," Prosor wrote. "He has completely lost his moral compass. Germany has a responsibility to readjust this compass. This disgraceful political campaign could become a nail in the coffin for the West and its institutions. Do not let it come to that!"

But the Post reported that Scholz spokesman Steffen Hebestreit, when was asked Wednesday if the German government would execute an ICC arrest order against Netanyahu, he said, "Of course. Yes, we abide by the law."

Germany is among the 124 countries that are part of the ICC, which was adopted in 1998 through a United Nations treaty, the Rome Statute. Israel and the United States are not signatories to the treaty and do not recognize the ICC's authority.

Germany is a generous donor to the ICC, the Post reported, and news that its government would arrest and deport an Israeli prime minister and defense minister if they stepped foot on German soil in light of the country's history with Nazis exterminating Jews in World War II has triggered shocking reports in German media and on social media.

The Post reported it sought comment Wednesday from German's Foreign Ministry about Prosor's X post and Scholz's decision to arrest Netanyahu if the warrant is implemented.

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