WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� on Thursday signed an executive order imposing sanctions on the International Criminal Court over investigations of Israel, a close U.S. ally.
Neither the U.S. nor Israel are members of or recognize the court, which has issued an for alleged war crimes over his after the Hamas attack against Israel in October 2023. Thousands of Palestinians, including children, have been killed during the Israeli military's response.
The order Trump signed accuses the ICC of engaging in 鈥渋llegitimate and baseless actions targeting America and our close ally Israel" and of abusing its power by issuing 鈥渂aseless arrest warrants鈥� against Netanyahu and his former defense minister, Yoav Gallant.
鈥淭he ICC has no jurisdiction over the United States or Israel,鈥� the order states, adding that the court had set a 鈥渄angerous precedent鈥� with its actions against both countries.
Trump鈥檚 action came as . He and Trump held talks Tuesday at the White House. Netanyahu spent some of Thursday meeting lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
The order says the U.S. will impose 鈥渢angible and significant consequences鈥� on those responsible for the ICC's 鈥渢ransgressions.鈥� 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 U.S. interests in other conflict zones where the court is investigating.
鈥淰ictims of human rights abuses around the world turn to the International Criminal Court when they have nowhere else to go, and President Trump鈥檚 executive order will make it harder for them to find justice," said Charlie Hogle, staff attorney with American Civil Liberties Union鈥檚 National Security Project. 鈥淭he 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.鈥�
Hogle said the order "is an attack on both accountability and free speech.鈥�
鈥淵ou can disagree with the court and the way it operates, but this is beyond the pale,鈥� Sarah Yager, Washington director of Human Rights Watch, said in an interview prior to the announcement.
Like Israel, the U.S. is not among the court鈥檚 124 members and has long harbored suspicions that a 鈥淕lobal Court鈥� of unelected judges could arbitrarily prosecute U.S officials. A 2002 law authorizes the Pentagon to liberate any American or U.S. ally held by the court. In 2020, Trump sanctioned chief prosecutor Karim Khan鈥檚 predecessor, Fatou Bensouda, over her decision to open an inquiry into war crimes committed by all sides, including the U.S., in Afghanistan.
However, those sanctions were lifted under President Joe Biden and the U.S. began to tepidly cooperate with the tribunal 鈥� especially after Khan in 2023 charged Russian President Vladimir Putin with war crimes in Ukraine.
Driving that turnaround was Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who organized meetings in Washington, New York and Europe between Khan and GOP lawmakers who have been among the court鈥檚 fiercest critics.
Now, Graham says he feels betrayed by Khan 鈥� and is vowing to crush the court as well as the economy of any country that tries to enforce the arrest warrant against Netanyahu.
鈥淭his is a rogue court. This is a kangaroo court,鈥� Graham said in an interview in December. 鈥淭here are places where the court makes perfect sense. Russia is a failed state. People fall out of windows. But I never in my wildest dreams imagined they would go after Israel, which has one of the most independent legal systems on the planet.鈥�
鈥淭he legal theory they鈥檙e using against Israel has no limits and we鈥檙e next,鈥� he added.
Biden had called the warrants an abomination and Trump鈥檚 national security adviser, Mike Waltz, has accused the court of having an antisemitic bias.
Any sanctions could cripple the court by making it harder for its investigators to travel and by compromising U.S.-developed technology to safeguard evidence. The court last year suffered a major cyberattack that left employees unable to access files for weeks.
Some European countries are pushing back. The Netherlands, in a statement late last year, called on other ICC members 鈥渢o cooperate to mitigate risks of these possible sanctions, so that the court can continue to carry out its work and fulfil its mandate.鈥�
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Goodman reported from Miami.
Darlene Superville And Joshua Goodman, The Associated Press
