President Donald Trump signed an executive order imposing sanctions on the International Criminal Court on Thursday over its investigation of Israel for alleged “war crimes” in Gaza and its decision to issue arrest warrants for Israeli officials, including Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu.
The order includes a declaration of a national emergency to respond to what it describes as the court’s “unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States.”
“The ICC’s recent actions against Israel and the United States set a dangerous precedent, directly endangering current and former United States personnel, including active service members of the Armed Forces, by exposing them to harassment, abuse and possible arrest,” the order states.
The executive order states that the ICC “has engaged in illegitimate and baseless actions targeting America and our close ally Israel.
“The ICC has, without a legitimate basis, asserted jurisdiction over and opened preliminary investigations concerning personnel of the United States and certain of its allies, including Israel, and has further abused its power by issuing baseless arrest warrants targeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Former Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant.
“The ICC has no jurisdiction over the United States or Israel, as neither country is party to the Rome Statute or a member of the ICC. Neither country has ever recognized the ICC’s jurisdiction, and both nations are thriving democracies with militaries that strictly adhere to the laws of war. The ICC’s recent actions against Israel and the United States set a dangerous precedent, directly endangering current and former United States personnel, including active service members of the Armed Forces, by exposing them to harassment, abuse, and possible arrest,” the order states.
“This malign conduct in turn threatens to infringe upon the sovereignty of the United States and undermines the critical national security and foreign policy work of the United States Government and our allies, including Israel,” it adds.
“The United States unequivocally opposes and expects our allies to oppose any ICC actions against the United States, Israel, or any other ally of the United States that has not consented to ICC jurisdiction. The United States remains committed to accountability and to the peaceful cultivation of international order, but the ICC and parties to the Rome Statute must respect the decisions of the United States and other countries not to subject their personnel to the ICC’s jurisdiction, consistent with their respective sovereign prerogatives,” Trump’s order states.
“The United States will impose tangible and significant consequences on those responsible for the ICC’s transgressions, some of which may include the blocking of property and assets, as well as the suspension of entry into the United States of ICC officials, employees, and agents, as well as their immediate family members, as their entry into our Nation would be detrimental to the interests of the United States.”
Neither the United States nor Israel are members of the court, which is a stand-alone entity in The Hague and is not a part of the United Nations. Both Washington and Yerushalayim have argued that they are outside the tribunal’s jurisdiction.
In November, the court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, then the Israeli defense minister.
The sanctions order imposes “tangible and significant consequences” on court personnel, including a block on property and assets, and a ban on entry into the United States for sanctioned individuals and their families.
The centrality of the U.S. dollar in banking and the frequency with which foreign banks transact with their U.S. counterparts means that the imposition of American sanctions typically freezes the accounts even of foreign nationals with foreign currency deposits held in foreign banks if those banks are connected to the global financial system.
Trump’s order does not list any individuals to be sanctioned, though it mentions a “person listed in the annex to this order.” The White House has not yet published that annex.
The order also calls on the U.S. secretaries of treasury and state to provide a list of additional people to be sanctioned within 60 days.
“It’s unfortunate that Chuck Schumer decided to protect the ICC from sanctions as this kangaroo court targets U.S. soldiers and does Hamas’s bidding. But I’m grateful that President Trump is acting,” said Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.). “Another promise made and kept by President Trump.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) stated that Trump’s “bold executive action” sanctions a court that “is a rogue organization with a corrupt prosecutor, who has violated the spirit of the law regarding prosecutions against Israel’s prime minister and former defense minister.”
“Israel is not a member of the court. The ICC has gone off the rails by exercising jurisdiction over a country that is not party to the Rome Statue. I fear they will not stop at Israel,” Graham added. “Under the legal theory being used against Israel, it is very conceivable the ICC will one day come after an American president and defense secretary for allegations of war crimes made by adversaries.”
Trump’s executive order is “a necessary deterrent to protect American military personnel and others,” Graham stated. “These sanctions will be a strong signal to the world regarding the legitimacy of the court’s actions against Israel.”
Yinam Cohen, the consul general of Israel to the Midwest, hosted a panel in Chicago about the Hague court on Thursday.
“This court has falsely equated Israel, a democratic state with its own robust legal system, with Hamas, a globally recognized terror organization,” Cohen stated. “We are pleased with the current administration’s support on these issues.”
Trump’s executive order is similar to the sanctions described in the Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act, which failed to pass the Senate in January after all but one Democrat voted against the measure.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) argued that the sanctions package was overly broad and could negatively impact American companies that contract with the Hague court.
A slew of long-standing emergency-power laws grants the president broad authority to impose sanctions without the need for new legislation, however.
In 2020, Trump sanctioned two ICC officials over the court’s investigation of alleged U.S. war crimes in Afghanistan.
Former President Joe Biden removed those sanctions in 2021. JNS
{Matzav.com}
