Israel is to lodge an appeal against the arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, Netanyahu's office said on Wednesday.

Israel has informed the International Criminal Court that it will contest arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defence minister Yoav Gallant over their conduct of the Gaza war,

The Foreign Ministry did not say outright that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel would be free to travel to France, but it argued that an I.C.C. rule on immunity may apply to him.