The IPSC has submitted a Communication to the International Criminal Court under Article 15 of the Rome Statute, concerning the alleged individual criminal responsibility of the Governor of the Central Bank under Article 25(3)(c) and Article 25(3)(d)(ii) of the Rome Statute .
The Communication provides information for the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court on the conduct of the Governor of the Central Bank of Ireland, Gabriel Makhlouf. It has been submitted that there is a reasonable basis to believe that the Governor and the Central Bank of Ireland may have contributed to, or otherwise aided and abetted, the commission of the crime of genocide by the State of Israel .
Independent epidemiological analysis published in The Lancet estimated approximately 64,260 deaths from traumatic injury in Gaza in the period from 7 October 2023 to 30 June 2024 alone, some 41 per cent higher than the contemporaneous official record. Many more Palestinians have been displaced and are subjected to unbearable conditions of life, deprived of even the most basic necessities, as Israel continues to place heavy restrictions on humanitarian aid allowed into the Strip. The ability of Israel to generate funds through the sale of state bonds has been key to aiding it in its military campaign, which has been recognised by Ireland, and several international bodies and experts, to constitute a genocide of the Palestinian people in Gaza.
The Central Bank of Ireland renewed its approval of Israel’s prospectus in 2024. Evidence provided to the Joint Oireachtas Committee indicates that the Central Bank executive leadership was aware during this period of the ongoing proceedings before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and of the Court’s determination that the rights, and the risks thereto, of the Palestinian people in Gaza are plausible. In 2025, the Central Bank of Ireland approved the transfer of the prospectus vetting and approval function to the competent authority in Luxembourg (the CSSF), although Ireland remained – and continues to remain – the designated home Member State under the EU Prospectus Regulation.
The Communication outlines that the Central Bank of Ireland was under an international legal obligation to stop facilitating the sale of Israel Bonds given the obligation to prevent genocide, which is binding on the Central Bank of Ireland as an organ of the Irish State, and that it was empowered to act under European law to do so.
The communication brings to the attention of the Office of the Prosecutor three instances that may incur the individual criminal liability of the Governor of the Central Bank of Ireland, as the official with responsibility for the overall management of the institution, directly exercising executive and regulatory powers and holding overall decision-making authority regarding the Central Bank’s policies:
(i) the approval of the prospectus for Israel bonds in September 2024 having actual knowledge that the risks to the rights of Palestinians in Gaza under the Genocide Convention were deemed by the Court to be plausible, pursuant to the order for preliminary measures made by the ICJ on 26 January 2024
(ii) the non-exercise of powers available , including the power under Article 42 of Regulation (EU) 600/2014 to prohibit or restrict the marketing and distribution of those bonds;
(iii) the transfer of Israeli Bonds prospectus prior to September 2025 to Luxembourg’s Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier when the Irish state, and several international bodies and experts, recognised that Israel’s military campaign in Gaza constituted a genocide.
These actions and omissions, are alleged to have been committed with knowledge of Israel’s intent to commit the crime of genocide in Gaza, and to have contributed to the commission of the crime under Article 25(3)(d)(ii) of the Rome Statute, or alternatively may constitute aiding and abetting under Article 25(3)(c) by facilitating Israel’s access to EU capital markets.
Following submission of the Communication on 26 August 2026, a statement from the IPSC said: “The IPSC, having taken the domestic criminal process as far as is currently possible, is now taking its case to the international level. We are asking the Office of the Prosecutor to investigate the Central Bank Governor’s responsibility under articles 25(3)(d)(ii) and 25(3)(c) of the Rome Statute for his alleged contribution to Israel’s commission of the crime of genocide.”
“We believe that it is our duty to take all steps available to us to end the shameful facilitation of the sale of Israeli Bonds by the Central Bank of Ireland, an institution of our state.”
“The current prospectus for Israeli Bonds ends on 31st August 2026. We reiterate our call on the Central Bank of Ireland not to approve or to transfer any further Israeli Bonds prospectus. We call on the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance, and the Government to ensure that the Central Bank of Ireland does not enable the sale of Israeli Bonds after 31st August. This shameful chapter must end. These bonds help fund a military campaign that the Irish Government itself has recognised as genocide. The Central Bank enabled their sale after the International Court of Justice’s warning, and after that warning was put to it directly. It cannot say it was not told.”
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IPSC submits Communication to the International Criminal Court concerning alleged individual criminal responsibility of Central Bank Governor
Aggregated summary from an independent source. Read the original at IPSC.