Israel Thanks US for Sanctions Against ‘Politically Motivated’ Criminal Court

Jerusalem, 14 June, 2020 (TPS) -- Israel welcomed the US ‘ announcement that it was leveling sanctions against the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague over its attempts to prosecute US troops and the Jewish State for alleged war crimes.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday stating that the ICC was infringing on the US’ sovereignty and any attempt to arrest US citizens within the framework of the ICC’s investigations “constitutes an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the US.”

He authorized economic sanctions against any official at the International Criminal Court who investigates US troops.

In a press conference, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo noted that the US is “also gravely concerned about the threat the court poses to Israel.”

“The ICC is already threatening Israel with an investigation of so-called war crimes committed by its forces and personnel in the West Bank and in the Gaza Strip,” he stated.

“Given Israel’s robust civilian and military legal system and strong track record of investigating and prosecuting wrongdoing by military personnel, it’s clear the ICC is only putting Israel in its crosshairs for nakedly political purposes.  It’s a mockery of justice,” he added.

More than 300 members of Congress recently sent Pompeo letters asking that the US support Israel in the face of the ICC’s “lawless, politicized attacks.”

Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi thanked Trump and the US for “the decision to take steps against the ICC for its politically motivated and illegitimate attempts to assert jurisdiction against Israel and the US.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated Trump and Pompeo for “their bold leadership in sanctioning the corrupt and biased International Criminal Court.”

In April, ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda affirmed her attempt to exercise jurisdiction over Palestinian Authority (PA) controlled areas in Judea, Samaria, and Gaza through a new filing to the Court.

Bensouda made the move even though seven states that are party to the Rome Statute, Australia, Austria, Brazil, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, and Uganda, have made formal submissions to the Court that assert that the ICC does not have jurisdiction to proceed with this investigation.

Earlier that month, Israeli Minister Yuval Steinitz, Coordinator of the Intermenstrual Task Force for the ICC, stated that “as someone who has closely followed” developments at the ICC, he is “forced to conclude that the Prosecutor’s latest position continues to espouse her typical anti-Israel stance, as influenced by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and the global BDS movement.”

“The Prosecutor’s disregard for the opinions of some of the world’s leading experts on international law points to her determination to harm the State of Israel and tarnish its name,” he charged.

“In the name of this objective she has reformulated the rules of international law, inventing a Palestinian state while the Israeli-Palestinian peace process has yet to be concluded,” he added.

“Israel will continue to be proud of the fact that it is the only liberal democracy in the entire Middle East – and to vigorously reject baseless attempts to tarnish its name and harm its soldiers and civilians,” he concluded.