Netanyahu asked Biden last week to uphold the sanctions imposed by the Trump administration on the International Criminal Court (ICC), Israeli officials told me.
Why does it matter: Israeli officials are concerned that the removal of sanctions would hamper Israel’s efforts to stop a possible war crimes investigation against Israel and that the court prosecutor may see this as a signal that the US is not strongly opposed to the investigation.
The whole picture: ICC judges paved the way for a possible investigation last month when they ruled the court had jurisdiction in the West Bank and Gaza. (Israel is not a party to the Rome Statute, which establishes the court’s mandate, but the Palestinian territories are.)
- Israel is very concerned that any investigation could lead to international arrest warrants against Israeli officials and military officers and could stimulate BDS (boycott, divestment and sanctions) campaigns against Israel.
- Israel has asked dozens of allies to send a “discreet message” to urge ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda not to move forward with the investigation, as Axios reported two weeks ago.
Flashback: Although also not a party to the Rome Statute, the US had its own confrontations with the ICC, which chose in March last year to continue an investigation into the war in Afghanistan, which could involve US and CIA troops.
- The Trump administration has reacted angrily, imposing sanctions on ICC officials, including Bensouda, and threatening to sanction court judges.
- Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has promised further measures if the ICC opens an investigation into Israel.
Game status: Israeli diplomats have warned their US counterparts that even if the administration does not agree with the sanctions, it should keep them in place as a lever to persuade Bensouda and her successor not to continue investigations in Afghanistan or the West Bank and Gaza.
- The issue was raised through a recent phone call between Ashkenazi and Blinken, Israeli officials say.
What are they saying: “In my phone call with President Biden, I spoke about our moral obligation to protect our troops from those who try to defame morality with false claims,” Netanyahu said last Thursday at a memorial service for missing soldiers in action.
- His comments went unnoticed, but Israeli officials told me he hinted at possible ICC investigations into Israeli and American soldiers.
- Netanyahu’s office declined to comment on the story, as did the White House and the State Department.