The confrontation intensified after ICC judges issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant, accusing them of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza conflict.
By United with Israel Staff
The United States is signaling a sharp escalation in its confrontation with the International Criminal Court, warning that additional sanctions and even more severe steps are on the table unless the court halts efforts to advance arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant, and provides written assurance that no active investigation is underway against American citizens.
White House and State Department officials said Wednesday that Washington has relayed these demands both to ICC member states and directly to the court, according to a report from Reuters.
American officials argue that the court’s actions represent a breach of its mandate and an unacceptable intrusion into the sovereignty of countries that never joined the ICC, first and foremost the United States and Israel. One official said the court is asserting “unlimited investigative powers,” which he described as a threat to the national security of allied nations.
The pressure builds on top of a separate set of demands made by President Donald Trump’s administration. A senior U.S. official said Washington wants the ICC to amend its founding document so that it cannot investigate the president or senior U.S. officials.
The United States is also demanding the termination of the court’s probe of American forces in Afghanistan. If the ICC refuses, the official said Washington could impose sanctions on additional ICC personnel and may even target the institution as a whole.
The confrontation intensified after ICC judges issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant, accusing them of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza conflict. The United States has rejected the move as illegitimate, noting that neither Washington nor Jerusalem recognizes the court’s jurisdiction.
From Washington’s perspective, the ICC’s attempt to prosecute the leaders of democratic states fighting terrorist organizations crosses a red line. U.S. officials insist that the court is undermining its own credibility by inserting itself into conflicts involving nonmember states, and warn that unless the court steps back, the United States is prepared to respond forcefully.
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