Israeli PM Netanyahu commends U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio for sanctioning four ICC judges over attempts to prosecute Israeli and U.S. officials.
The four judges joined four others that the Trump administration had already placed on a list of judges subject to sanctions in June.
The judges will now not be allowed to enter the United States and their assets will be frozen there.
For authorizing arrest warrants against former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Prime Minister Netanyahu for suspected war crimes in Gaza, French judge Nicolas Yann Guillou was reprimanded.
Senegalese deputy prosecutor Mame Mandiaye Niang and Fijian deputy prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan received penalties for enforcing the warrants.
The sentence also came after Canadian Judge Kimberly Prost authorized an ICC probe into the actions of U.S. forces in Afghanistan.
“I congratulate US Secretary of State Marco Rubio for deciding to impose sanctions on the judges of the International Court in The Hague,”
Netanyahu stated Wednesday evening.
“This is a firm measure against the mendacious smear campaign against the State of Israel and the IDF, and for truth and justice.”
“The ICC continues to disregard national sovereignty and facilitate lawfare through efforts to investigate, arrest, detain, and prosecute American and Israeli nationals. In response, I am sanctioning four additional ICC officials,”
Rubio said in a statement.
In November 2024, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Gallant and Netanyahu.
Since neither Israel nor the US are parties to the Rome Statute, which created the ICC's jurisdiction over member nations, they have denied the warrants' legitimacy.
Prior to his resignation in the midst of an inquiry into allegations of sexual misconduct, ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan was listed on the U.S. list of "Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons" in February.
“The United States has been clear and steadfast in our opposition to the ICC’s politicization, abuse of power, disregard for our national sovereignty, and illegitimate judicial overreach,”
Rubio said in a statement.
“The court is a national security threat that has been an instrument for lawfare against the United States and our close ally Israel,”
he charged.
“It remains the policy of the United States government to take whatever actions we deem necessary to protect our troops, our sovereignty, and our allies from the ICC’s illegitimate and baseless actions.”
“I urge countries that still support the ICC, many of whose freedom was purchased at the price of great American sacrifices, to resist the claims of this bankrupt institution.”
Why is Netanyahu's response to Rubio’s sanctions considered significant?
Netanyahu’s public praise of Rubio underscores close U.S.-Israel alignment in opposing the ICC's investigations, signaling a united front against international legal actions viewed as politically motivated.
His statement reinforces Israel’s longstanding position that the ICC lacks jurisdiction over Israeli officials, especially since Israel is not a party to the Rome Statute that established the court.
Netanyahu's endorsement of the sanctions strengthens his domestic and international position, framing the ICC actions as a smear campaign against Israel rather than legitimate judicial proceedings.