US lawmakers advance bill to sanction ICC over Israel probe

WASHINGTON

The U.S. House of Representatives voted Tuesday to advance a largely symbolic bill calling for sanctions on the International Criminal Court after its prosecutor applied for an arrest warrant against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Hague-based court's prosecutor has said Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant should be arrested on charges relating to the war in Gaza, along with three leaders of militant group Hamas.

The U.S. House's Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act — backed by almost every Republican and around a fifth of the Democrats — would bar U.S. entry for ICC officials involved with the case, revoking their visas and restricting any U.S.-based property transactions.

"Today's vote draws a line in the sand for lawless action by ICC officials," Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson said in a statement.

"The U.S. firmly stands with Israel and refuses to allow international bureaucrats to baselessly issue arrest warrants to Israeli leadership for false crimes."

The legislation is considered a "messaging bill," however, as it is unlikely to be taken up by the Democratic-run Senate and could be vetoed in any case by President Joe Biden, who has said he "strongly opposes" it.

ICC prosecutor Karim Khan said last month he was seeking warrants for the two Israelis — as well as Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, Ismail Haniyeh and Mohammed Deif — on suspicions of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The ICC's 124 member states will ultimately decide whether to enforce any warrants issued by its judges. Neither Israel nor the United states are members.

While the White House has criticized the ICC, and Biden called the application for arrest warrants "outrageous," U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said last week that sanctions were not "the right approach."

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller reaffirmed the policy on Tuesday, telling reporters ahead of the vote: "Our position as the administration is we don't support sanctions. We don't believe it is appropriate at this time."

Netanyahu said he was "surprised and disappointed" by the U.S. stance in an interview broadcast Sunday, amid strained relations between Washington and its ally over the rising death toll in Gaza.

Biden announced on Friday that Israel was offering a new roadmap towards a permanent peace, outlining a three-phase proposal that would start with a six-week complete ceasefire.

But Netanyahu insisted his country would still pursue the war until it had reached all its goals.

Israel launched its war on Gaza in retaliation for the Hamas' Oct. 7 attacks that resulted in the deaths of more than 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli official figures.

Israel's offensive has killed more than 36,000 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry.