Tags: icc | israel | us | threats | war | investigation

International Criminal Court Rejects 'Threats' From US, Israel

By    |   Friday, 03 May 2024 09:49 PM EDT

The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Friday expressed its rejection of "threats" as it mulls possible arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, other senior Israeli officials, as well as Hamas officials.

The statement came as Israel is courting U.S. influence to quash such warrants.

The ICC's Office of the Prosecutor said in a statement it "seeks to engage constructively with all stakeholders whenever such dialogue is consistent with its mandate under the Rome Statute to act independently and impartially. That independence and impartiality are undermined, however, when individuals threaten to retaliate against the Court or against Court personnel should the Office, in fulfillment of its mandate, make decisions about investigations or cases falling within its jurisdiction.

"Such threats, even when not acted upon, may also constitute an offence against the administration of justice under Art. 70 of the Rome Statute."

The ICC did not provide details of the threats in its statement.

Neither the U.S. nor Israel are among the 123 members of the ICC, which was established in 2002 through an international statute that grants the court the authority to address matters such as genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and crimes of aggression.

According to Axios, the Israeli government warned the Biden administration that if the ICC pursued the arrest warrants, Israel would retaliate and collapse the Palestinian Authority. On Thursday, senators from both parties met with ICC officials to persuade them about issuing arrest warrants. The Biden administration has joined the effort, as well.

"We've been really clear about the ICC investigation," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said during Monday's briefing. "We do not support it. We don't believe that they have the jurisdiction. And I'm just going to leave it there for now."

Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, balked at the notion of the ICC's investigation, adding that Israel has a "comparable system" to investigate itself, The Hill reported Friday.

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., argued that prosecutions of Israeli officials could be a slippery slope for setting a precedent to prosecute American officials because neither country is a signatory to the court.

"Such a lawless action by the ICC would directly undermine US national security interests," Johnson said, according to The Hill. "If unchallenged by the Biden administration, the ICC could create and assume unprecedented power to issue arrest warrants against American political leaders, American diplomats, and American military personnel, thereby endangering our country's sovereign authority."

Nick Koutsobinas

Nick Koutsobinas, a Newsmax writer, has years of news reporting experience. A graduate from Missouri State University’s philosophy program, he focuses on exposing corruption and censorship.

© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.


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The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Friday expressed its rejection of "threats" as it mulls possible arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, other senior Israeli officials, as well as Hamas officials.
icc, israel, us, threats, war, investigation
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2024-49-03
Friday, 03 May 2024 09:49 PM
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