US President Donald Trump issued an executive order on Thursday sanctioning the International Criminal Court for “baseless” probes on America and its close ally Israel, according to the White House.
Trump’s order stated
Trump’s order stated that the court in The Hague had “violated its power” by issuing a search warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who met with the US president on Tuesday.
The decree further stated that the ICC has engaged in “illegitimate and baseless actions targeting America and our close ally Israel,” alluding to investigations into suspected war crimes by US service men in Afghanistan and Israeli troops in Gaza.Trump Sanctions International Criminal Court Over “Illegitimate Actions”
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The US president issued asset freezes and travel restrictions against ICC officials, staff, and their families, as well as anyone believed to have assisted the court’s investigations.
The penalties are a show of support following Netanyahu’s visit to the White House, during which Trump announced a plan for the US to “take over” Gaza and relocate Palestinians to other Middle Eastern countries.
The ICC did not react immediately
On November 21, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu, his former defence minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif, whom Israel claims is dead.
The warrants, obtained in May following an application by ICC prosecutor Karim Khan, include “crimes against humanity and war crimes conducted from at least 8 October 2023 until at least 20 May 2024.”
In 2020, Trump slapped financial sanctions and a visa restriction on the International Criminal Court’s then-prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, as well as other senior officials and personnel.
His administration, referring to it as a “kangaroo court,” took the decision after Gambian-born Bensouda opened an inquiry into allegations of war crimes against US forces in Afghanistan.
While his order at the time did not include Israel, Trump administration officials said they were also upset by Bensouda’s decision to begin an investigation into the situation in the Palestinian territories in 2019.
President Joe Biden withdrew the sanctions shortly after taking office in 2021.
Prosecutor Khan later almost dismissed the United States from the Afghan probe, focussing instead on the Taliban.
Biden harshly opposed the “outrageous” warrant issued against Netanyahu in November.
The US House passed a bill last month imposing sanctions on the ICC, but Senate Democrats vetoed it last week, claiming it might harm US friends and businesses.
Democrats, on the other hand, have expressed outrage about the restrictions imposed on Netanyahu.
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