First Thing: Israel’s nine-year ‘war’ of spying, hacking and intimidating the ICC exposed

The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has taken a close interest in the intelligence operations against the ICC and its chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, sources say. Composite: Guardian Design/Sipa/Shutterstock

Good morning.

Israel has run an almost decade-long secret “war” against the international criminal court (ICC), deploying its intelligence agencies to surveil, hack, pressure, smear and allegedly threaten senior ICC staff in an effort to derail the court’s inquiries, an investigation by the Guardian and the Israeli-based magazines +972 and Local Call can reveal.