The US House of Representatives voted to sanction the International Criminal Court because of Israel Reuters
Author: Patricia Zengerle
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. House of Representatives voted on Thursday to sanction the International Criminal Court to protest the arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense minister over Israel’s campaign in Gaza.
The vote was 243-140 in favor of the “Unlawful Court Act,” which would sanction any alien who investigates, arrests, detains or prosecutes US citizens or nationals of an allied country, including Israel, who are not members of the court.
Forty-five Democrats joined 198 Republicans in supporting the bill. Not a single Republican voted against it.
“America is passing this law because the kangaroo court is seeking to arrest the prime minister of our great ally, Israel,” said Rep. Brian Mast, the Republican chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, in a speech on the House floor before the vote.
The vote in the House of Representatives, one of the first since a new session of Congress began last week, showed strong support among President-elect Donald Trump’s Republicans for the Israeli government, now that they control both houses of Congress.
The ICC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The first Trump administration imposed sanctions on the ICC in 2020 in response to investigations into war crimes in Afghanistan, including allegations of torture against American citizens.
Those sanctions were lifted by President Joe Biden’s administration, although Secretary of State Antony Blinken said last May that he was willing to work with Congress to potentially impose new sanctions on the ICC over prosecutors’ requests for arrest warrants for Israeli leaders.
Five years ago, then-ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda and other staff had their credit cards and bank accounts frozen and were barred from traveling to the US.
New sanctions passed by the U.S. House of Representatives also allowed for the targeting of individuals who assist in the work of the court.
SANCTIONS COULD ‘THREAT’ ICC, ITS PRESIDENT SAYS
In December, the court’s president, Judge Tomoko Akane, told the ICC’s 125 member states that “these measures would quickly undermine the work of the Court in all situations and cases and threaten its very existence.”
Trump will be sworn in for a second term as president on January 20.
The newly appointed Republican Senate Majority Leader, John Thune, has promised quick consideration of the sanctions bill in his House so that Trump can sign it into law shortly after taking office.
The ICC is a permanent court that can prosecute individuals for war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and crimes of aggression in member states or by their nationals.
The court said its decision to issue warrants against Israeli officials was consistent with its approach in all cases, based on prosecutors’ assessment that there was sufficient evidence to proceed and the view that an immediate search for an arrest warrant could prevent ongoing crimes.
Republicans in Congress have condemned the ICC since it issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former defense chief Yoav Gallant, accusing them of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the 15-month conflict in Gaza. Israel denies the accusations.
The Republican-led House of Representatives passed legislation seeking to sanction the ICC in June, but the measure was never considered in the Senate, which at the time was controlled by a Democratic majority.
