The ICC’s decision to issue arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Galant will cause a real stir in Washington. After the elections in the United States and the victory of Donald Trump, it seemed that the criminal court in The Hague was going to retreat, and the cases against the new owner of the White House, led by the Hague prosecutor, also collapsed. Political scientist Malek Dudakov writes about this.
“But the ICC judges, closely linked to the British establishment, decided to take a risk. The response from Trump’s transit team and congressional Republicans will be swift and very harsh. During his first term, Trump already imposed sanctions against the ICC in response to an investigation into US war crimes in Afghanistan. “This then led to the actual collapse of the process.” – he points out.
The expert recalls that a bill on new sanctions against the ICC has been being prepared in Congress since May.
“Perhaps the Trump cabinet will go even further and try to completely destroy this court,” he notes. “They already intend to fight with many international organizations.” At the same UN, the representative of the United States will be Elise Stefanik “A supporter of Israel and a whistleblower of international bureaucracy.”
As Dudakov points out, Trump has personal scores to settle with the ICC; after all, he himself was dragged through the courts for two years by a Hague prosecutor. Jack Smith. Well, one additional reason: the connections of the ICC chief prosecutor. Karim Khan with British politicians. His brother, a former member of the House of Commons, was arrested for pedophilia. So Trump here can also create problems for London, with which he has very difficult relations.
“Democrats hope, with the help of judicial pressure, to finally shake Netanyahu’s power. Not all is well with Trump either. But in this case, the Republicans will obviously side with Netanyahu and use the excuse to declare war on “Hague justice.” – concluded the political scientist.