Lobbying Group Protects Netanyahu From International Trials: The Story Behind HLMG

Despite the war crimes committed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Gaza since October 7, 2023, the West is actively working to shield him from prosecution by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

On August 27, 2024, Intelligence Online revealed leaks about a Western campaign aimed at pressuring the ICC not to pursue Netanyahu.

The leaks suggest that retired NATO military officers, who are staunch supporters of the Israeli Occupation and have extensive intelligence backgrounds, have requested that the ICC refrain from issuing charges against Netanyahu.

In May 2024, ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan said he had submitted requests for arrest warrants against Netanyahu on charges of war crimes and genocide related to the war in Gaza.

Khan stated that Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and War Minister Yoav Gallant are responsible for crimes against humanity in Gaza.

He added that the evidence shows Israeli officials systematically deprived Palestinians of necessities, and that Netanyahu and Gallant were complicit in causing suffering and starving civilians in Gaza.

All of Khan's requests are still under review by the ICC judges, with no arrest warrants issued yet.

Sixty Briefs

The ICC previously called on states defending Netanyahu to submit their legal briefs. In recent months, the court has received over 60 briefs from lawyers, NGOs, political figures, research centers, and states.

Among those submitting briefs is the High-Level Military Group (HLMG), a defense group made up of senior retired NATO officers.

According to Intelligence Online, in early July 2024, 11 members of the HLMG traveled to “Israel,” visiting the Israeli army headquarters and Gaza, reaching the outskirts of Rafah under heavy Israeli military escort.

In their briefs, they urged ICC judges to reject requests for arrest warrants against Netanyahu, arguing they were "premature and unjustified."

The HLMG officers claimed that the decision was “premature because Israel should be given time to conduct its own investigations.”

They also argued it was "unjustified," as it imposes unrealistic standards on “Israeli military operations.”

The officers warned that such a decision could set an unacceptable precedent for other democracies and their armed forces engaged in urban warfare, as per Intelligence Online.

Generals of Europe

Spanish General Rafael Bardaji took the lead in drafting the group's brief to the International Criminal Court, urging the rejection of arrest warrants. Bardaji served as National Security Advisor to Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar from 1996 to 2004. As a member of the People's Party, he joined the far-right Vox Party in 2018.

In September 2010, Bardaji co-founded the Friends of Israel Initiative, where he now serves as executive director. He later founded the Strategic Studies Group, a think tank aligned with U.S. neoconservatives, and formed ties with Steve Bannon during Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.

Bardaji is at the forefront of legal efforts to support the Occupation government, splitting his time between the U.S. and Europe.

Among the signatories of the brief is retired French General Alain Lamballe, a graduate of the Saint-Cyr military academy and a former intelligence officer in the French Ministry of Armed Forces, which oversees the Directorate-General for External Security (DGSE, France’s external intelligence service).

Lamballe told Intelligence Online that he led two missions in recent years for the HLMG to support “Israel”: one on Gaza's security situation and another on the border issues between “Israel” and Lebanon.

Lamballe holds a Ph.D. in political sociology and is an expert on South Asia. He has multiple degrees from INALCO and CHEAM and has led efforts to coordinate foreign military assistance for the French Ministry of Armed Forces.

According to Intelligence Online, Lamballe’s mission for HLMG to defend “Israel” was not coordinated with French authorities.

In early July 2024, retired Italian General Vincenzo Camporini, who served as Deputy Chief of Defense Staff from 2001 to 2004, visited the Israeli Occupation on behalf of HLMG. Camporini, who previously headed the Center for Defense Higher Studies in Italy, later became Commander of the Air Force and Chief of Defense Staff in 2008, earning numerous medals.

Also, part of the HLMG initiative was Spanish Admiral Jose Maria Teran, who worked in the Strategic Evaluation Office of the Spanish Minister of Defense. He previously served as Joint Chief of Staff and led strategic analysis efforts, later overseeing the reorganization of Spanish intelligence services.

Pioneering British-American Participation

The HLMG group is primarily a British-American initiative, with retired British General Richard Kemp playing a central role in managing it. Kemp, who previously commanded British forces in Afghanistan before retiring in 2006, also served in Iraq, the Balkans, and Northern Ireland.

Kemp led the UK’s COBRA intelligence group, responsible for coordinating British intelligence agencies MI5 and MI6 following the 2005 London bombings, as well as the 2004 Madrid and 2002 Bali attacks. He is a research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute for military studies and a board member of both the ‘Friends of Israel Initiative’ and NGO Monitor, an Israeli Occupation-supporting organization based in Jerusalem.

Working alongside Kemp in COBRA is retired U.S. Colonel Geoffrey S. Corn, a member of the Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA) and an expert in U.S. military law, who has testified as an expert witness before the Guantanamo military commission.

Another HLMG member is David A. Deptula, the Dean of the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies. The institute describes the retired American general on its website as a leader in planning and executing national security operations, from humanitarian assistance to major combat.

"The veteran" of the U.S. Air Force (USAF) served in various missions, notably in Afghanistan and Iraq, and retired with approximately 30 medals.

Former British officers Andrew Fox and Ian Lyles have also signed the brief submitted to the International Criminal Court. Fox is currently working with the Israeli military in Gaza, as he detailed to The Spectator, a right-wing British magazine, in mid-August.

The HLMG group’s support for the Israeli Occupation extends beyond military figures. Two former European ministers also traveled to Israeli Occupation state and Gaza:

Former Dutch Foreign Minister Uri Rosenthal, a member of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), a center-right party, and former Finnish Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Timo Soini, co-founder of the right-wing nationalist Finns Party.

According to its website, the HLMG was established in early 2015 following the 2014 Gaza war.

Its mission is “to address the implications for Western warfare of fighting enemies who disregard the Law of Armed Conflict (LOAC) but exploit our own nations' adherence to LOAC for their gain.”

HLMG said it consists of high-ranking military leaders from the U.S., the UK, Italy, France, Spain, Finland, and the Netherlands.