Republicans use ICC warrant for Netanyahu as a way to divide Democrats

On Monday, the International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor Karim Khan announced that the court is seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, as well as multiple leaders of Hamas.

Unsurprisingly, Republicans overwhelmingly condemned the seeking of arrest warrants. House Speaker Mike Johnson noted how the ICC has no authority in Israel or the United States, as neither country recognizes it formally.

“In the absence of leadership from the White House, Congress is reviewing all options, including sanctions, to punish the ICC and ensure its leadership faces consequences if they proceed,” Johnson said in a statement. “If the ICC is allowed to threaten Israeli leaders, ours could be next.”

Republicans have been preparing for this for the past month. Last month, Politicoreported that Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas, the most hawkish Republican Senator, led a letter with 11 other Republicans, including Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, warning the ICC about consequences of issuing such warrants.

“Such actions are illegitimate and lack legal basis, and if carried out will result in severe sanctions against you and your institution,” the letter said. Unsurprisingly, Cotton condemned the announcement on Monday.

“Equating Israel’s democratically elected leaders with perpetrators of the worst attack on Jews since World War Two shows what a farce the International Criminal Court is,” he said. “Mr Khan’s kangaroo court has no jurisdiction to pursue these antisemitic and politically motivated ‘charges.’”

In turn, he said that he and his colleagues “look forward to making sure neither Khan, his associates nor their families ever set foot again in the United States.”

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