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Donald Trump sanctioned International Criminal Court officials looking into allies such as the United States and Israel, and reintroduced the policy from his first term.
In an executive order signed Thursday, the US president blocked financial sanctions for ICC employees and their families in a move coincided with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to Washington. The order also applies to officials investigating US citizens.
The White House did not immediately name the licensed officials.
The order says the court is a threat to the US “sovereignty” that “undermines the important national security and foreign policy work” of its allies, such as Israel.
ICC staff who are “liable” for court “violations” can freeze their assets and block them and their families from entering the United States.
In November, the ICC issued an arrest warrant to Netanyahu and then-Defense Minister Joab Gallant “for crimes against humanity and war crimes.”
The move marked a dramatic escalation of legal proceedings against the Israeli attack in Gaza, which killed around 47,000 people, according to Palestinian officials, and the ICC issued a warrant to Western-backed leaders. It was my first time.
The court also issued a warrant against then Hama Chief Mohamed Deif for crimes against humanity and war crimes against the group's October 7, 2023 attacks against Israel that sparked the conflict in Gaza.
The White House said “by issuing arrest warrants to Israeli officials and Hamas officials simultaneously, the ICC has created embarrassing moral equivalence.”
Trump's executive order said the ICC's “recent actions against Israel and the United States have set a dangerous precedent,” and Washington said “to the United States or Israel “that allies oppose and oppose the actions of the ICC.” I disagree and hope for it.”
Neither the United States nor Israel are members of the court and are unaware of its authority.
The ICC did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Israel's warrants required ICC members (including most European and Latin American countries, as well as parts of Asia and Africa) to arrest Netanyahu.
Joe Biden's White House denounced the warrant when they were issued. France, a member of the ICC and a US ally, said in November that Netanyahu could be exempt from arrest as he was not a signatory to the Roman law that Israel established the court.
The Independent Court is based in the Netherlands and was established in 2002 to prosecute perpetrators of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
Trump also took action against ICC officials in 2020, allowing assets to be frozen, preventing their families from coming to the US after courts began investigating US actions in Afghanistan.
