Trump signs order imposing sanctions on International Criminal Court over Israel
Neither the US nor Israel is a member of or recognises the court.
President Donald Trump has signed an executive order to impose sanctions on the International Criminal Court following The Hague’s investigations into Israel, a close American ally, during its war with Hamas.
Neither the US nor Israel is a member of or recognises the court, which has issued an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for alleged war crimes for his military response in Gaza after the October 7 attacks in 2023.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs on February 4, 47,540 Palestinians were killed in the Israeli military response since the October 7 attacks and a further 111,618 people were left injured.
Israel reports more than 1,200 fatalities and 5,400 injured for the same time period.
The order signed by Mr Trump accuses the ICC of engaging in “illegitimate and baseless actions targeting America and our close ally Israel” and of abusing its power by issuing “baseless arrest warrants” against Mr Netanyahu and his former defence minister, Yoav Gallant.
“The ICC has no jurisdiction over the United States or Israel,” the order states, adding that the court had set a “dangerous precedent” with its actions against both countries.
Mr Trump’s action comes during a visit by Mr Netanyahu to Washington.
He and Mr Trump held talks on Tuesday at the White House, and Mr Netanyahu spent some of Thursday meeting with politicians on Capitol Hill.
The order says the US will impose “tangible and significant consequences” on those responsible for the ICC’s “transgressions.”
Actions may include blocking property and assets and not allowing ICC officials, employees and relatives to enter the United States.
Human rights activists said sanctioning court officials would have a chilling effect and run counter to US interests in other conflict zones where the court is investigating.
American Civil Liberties Union’s National Security Project lawyer Charlie Hogle said of the order signed by the US President: “Victims of human rights abuses around the world turn to the International Criminal Court when they have nowhere else to go, and President Trump’s executive order will make it harder for them to find justice.
“The order also raises serious First Amendment concerns because it puts people in the United States at risk of harsh penalties for helping the court identify and investigate atrocities committed anywhere, by anyone.”
Mr Hogle added the order “is an attack on both accountability and free speech.”
Washington director of Human Rights Watch Sarah Yager added: “You can disagree with the court and the way it operates, but this is beyond the pale.”
Like Israel, the US is not among the court’s 124 members and has long harboured suspicions that a “Global Court” of unelected judges could arbitrarily prosecute US officials.
