The order Trump signed Thursday accuses the ICC of “illegitimate and baseless actions targeting America and our close ally Israel.” It cites the arrest warrant the ICC issued last year for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense minister, Yoav Gallant, over alleged war crimes in Gaza.
The court was created in 2002 to be a last stop for the most serious international crimes: war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and aggression.
In November, a pretrial panel of judges issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Gallant and Hamas’ military chief, accusing them of war crimes and crimes against humanity in connection with the war in Gaza.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s executive order imposing sanctions on the International Criminal Court could jeopardize trials and investigations at the world’s only permanent global tribunal for war crimes and genocide.
The warrant marked the first time that a sitting leader of a major Western power has been accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity by a global court.
