Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar thanked US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday, after Rubio announced sanctions against Palestinian Arab NGOs directly engaged in the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) targeting of Israel.
“The ICC has been aided by the Palestinian NGOs - Al Haq, Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, and the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights - in its politicized crusade against Israel,” said Sa’ar.
“The ICC did so while trampling the principles of international law. I thank Secretary Rubio for yet another moral decision and for standing by Israel!” he added.
In his statement announcing the sanctions on the three organizations, Rubio said that they “directly engaged in efforts by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute Israeli nationals, without Israel’s consent.”
“This administration has been clear: the United States and Israel are not party to the Rome Statute and are therefore not subject to the ICC’s authority. We oppose the ICC’s politicized agenda, overreach, and disregard for the sovereignty of the United States and that of our allies. The ongoing actions of the ICC set a dangerous precedent for all nations and we will actively oppose actions that threaten our national interests and infringe on the sovereignty of the United States and our allies, including Israel,” the Secretary of State stressed.
In June, the Trump administration sanctioned four ICC judges. Two of the sanctioned judges authorized the arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant which the court issued last November. The others authorized an ICC investigation into abuses by US personnel in Afghanistan.
Last month, the US sanctioned ICC judges Kimberly Prost of Canada and Nicolas Guillou of France, along with deputy prosecutors Nazhat Shameem Khan of Fiji and Mame Mandiaye Niang of Senegal. According to the State Department, they were sanctioned for efforts to investigate and prosecute nationals of the United States and Israel without consent.
Previously, the US added Karim Khan, the ICC Chief Prosecutor, to its Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List, actively sanctioning him.