Senators urge Blinken to more strongly condemn ICC war-crimes probe of ‘Israel’

Senators Ben Cardin and Rob Portman have urged the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to take a stronger position against the International Criminal Court (ICC) decision to open a formal probe into Israeli war crimes in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

In a letter circulating among their colleagues and obtained by Haaretz, the two senators said Blinken should “issue a more forceful condemnation of the court’s actions” after the ICC announced on Feb. 5 that it has territorial jurisdiction to investigate ‘Israel’ for committing war crimes in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip.

The US State Department came out with a statement expressing “serious concerns” about the ruling and opposing the court’s “attempts to exercise its jurisdiction over Israeli personnel.”

Cardin and Portman, both members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, are now calling for more action from Blinken.

“We also urge you to work with like-minded international partners to steer the ICC away from further actions that could damage the court’s credibility by giving the appearance of political bias,” said the letter.

“We ask that you give this matter your full attention and that you continue to defend Israel against discriminatory attacks in all international fora.”

“The ICC’s mandate should not supersede Israel’s robust judicial system, including its military justice system,” added the senators, explaining that “it is not within the authority of the ICC to accept or deny any party’s claims to these disputed territories, nor has the court ever before formally investigated allegations taking place in disputed territories.”

“This unprecedented action by the ICC’s Pre-Trial Chamber unfairly targets Israel, biases any subsequent investigation or trial, and hinders the path towards regional peace.”

The US Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed the US’s firm opposition to the ICC’s decision, saying it has “no jurisdiction over this matter.”

He also said, “Israel is not a party to the ICC and has not consented to the Court’s jurisdiction, and we have serious concerns about the ICC’s attempts to exercise its jurisdiction over Israeli personnel.”

Blinken also stressed that the Palestinians don’t qualify as a sovereign state and therefore cannot participate in the ICC.

He stressed that the US remains “deeply committed to ensuring justice and accountability for international atrocity crimes” and recognizes “the role that international tribunals such as the ICC can play—within their respective mandates—in the pursuit of those important objectives.”

“Moreover, the United States believes a peaceful, secure and more prosperous future for the people of the Middle East depends on building bridges and creating new avenues for dialogue and exchange, not unilateral judicial actions that exacerbate tensions and undercut efforts to advance a negotiated two-state solution,” added Blinken.

“We will continue to uphold our strong commitment to Israel and its security, including by opposing actions that seek to target Israel unfairly.”

The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Fatou Bensouda said on Wednesday that she launched a formal probe into war crimes in the occupied Palestinian territories.

“The investigation will cover crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court that are alleged to have been committed in the Situation since 13 June 2014, the date to which reference is made in the Referral of the Situation to my Office,” she added.

Israel is not a member of the ICC and neither is the US. The Palestinians joined the court in 2015.

Last year, the Trump administration imposed sanctions against ICC officials, including revoking chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda’s entry visa, in response to the court’s attempts to prosecute American troops for actions in Afghanistan.

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