The three judges who made the decision hail from Benin, France, and Slovenia, but were elected by all 124 member states of the ICC and went through a rigorous vetting process. Their months-long deliberations included engaging with the Israeli government and assessing its claim that its own courts could handle the matter.

The I.C.C. rejected Israel’s challenges to its jurisdiction and also issued a warrant for a top Hamas official. Its chief prosecutor is seeking the arrests for war crimes in Israel and Gaza.