Middle East Eye has learned that the US is contemplating a legal move to contest the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) jurisdiction to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his defense minister in connection with suspected war crimes in Gaza.
US challenges ICC’s israel probe
Despite the US not being a signatory to the treaty that created the ICC, a US official briefed on the matter told MEE that the Biden administration is considering submitting an amicus curiae to the court, voicing its staunch opposition to the decision of the court’s chief prosecutor to seek arrest warrants for the Israeli officials. The discussions, which have not been made public before, take place in the midst of a push by the Biden administration’s top brass to keep the UK from withdrawing its legal challenge to the ICC. Speaking to MEE on condition of anonymity, the US source added his UK counterpart David Lammy was specifically ordered by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to keep contesting the court’s authority over Israeli nationals. On the fringes of the NATO meeting in Washington, DC, on Tuesday, Blinken brought up the ICC issue with Lammy. The two talked on “the need to reach a ceasefire in Gaza that secures the release of hostages and lays the groundwork for durable peace,” according to the meeting report, which omitted any reference to the ICC case. Since Keir Starmer’s new Labour government has until July 26 to decide whether to pursue the lawsuit that the nation’s previous conservative government started, the Biden administration’s lobbying has accelerated.
Biden admin questions ICC authority
An amicus curiae can be filed with the ICC by a state, an NGO, or a person. It’s unclear if it will influence the ICC, which has already filed its own amicus curiae with the US Supreme Court. The International Criminal Court (ICC) may, at its discretion, request opinions from parties it believes to be interested in a specific case. The US does not ratify the Rome Statute, which created the ICC in 2002, unlike the UK. Congress has also passed legislation to restrict US backing for the court. It carved up a space for cooperation between the Biden administration and the court in the latter’s war crimes case against Russia. It is likely to be symbolic if the US decides to formally express its disagreement to the action. The Biden administration has never hidden its disapproval of the court’s decision to request arrest warrants for key Hamas commanders in the Gaza Strip, as well as Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Netanyahu. “It is absurd that the ICC prosecutor is requesting arrest warrants for Israeli officials. To be clear, despite what this prosecutor may suggest, there is no comparison at all between Israel and Hamas. Following the ICC’s announcement that it was pursuing the warrants, the White House issued a statement saying, “We will always stand with Israel against threats to its security.”
Israel probe: US mulls legal action
Blinken said that Israel made attempts to collaborate with the ICC on its inquiry, but the prosecutor in charge of the court rejected them. The US was trying to arrange the visit, so it felt especially taken aback. Israel never gave its approval for Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan’s fact-finding expedition, according to his office. When approached for comment on this claim, a State Department official told MEE, “Our position on the ICC’s jurisdiction in this situation is well-known.” Lawmakers, both Democratic and Republican, have put Biden under a lot of pressure to reject the ICC. It has found it difficult to formulate a response despite acrimonious remarks and shady lobbying, partly due to its positioning as an ally of international institutions rather than former US President Donald Trump. Blinken stated to senators in a May Senate hearing that he would “welcome working with you” on the ICC’s penalty. Although the vote is mostly seen as symbolic, it does show how the majority of US politicians from the major parties continue to back each other without reservation. Heidi Zhou-Castro of Al Jazeera reported from Washington, DC, and stated that a few more formalities need to be completed before any penalties can be put into effect. Although US President Joe Biden voiced “deep concerns” on the request for arrest warrants for Gallant and Netanyahu, he vehemently disagreed with the ICC’s sanctions, claiming they were “going too far.”
ICC’s jurisdiction over Israel in question
Lawmakers in the United States have enacted legislation with the intention of sanctioning the International Criminal Court (ICC) in response to the prosecutor’s efforts to get arrest warrants for high-ranking Israeli officials on charges of war crimes in Gaza. Tuesday, the Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act received a 247-155 vote in favor in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. The measure would prohibit US entrance and limit any property transactions involving US citizens for ICC personnel connected to prosecutor Karim Khan’s request for arrest warrants for Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
