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The ICC has now issued arrest warrants for the Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu and the former Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant. They are being accused of possible “crimes against humanity” and “war crimes.” It’s a grotesque business, and it will be up to the Trump administration, beginning on January 20, to not just reject its findings as without merit, as the Biden administration has done, but to go on the offensive, curbing its power and then undermining the ICC in every way, with the ultimate aim of driving it out of business altogether.
An editorial in the New York Sun calls on the Trump administration to “curb and dismantle” the ICC. More on its argument can be found here: “Time To Dissolve the International Criminal Court,” New York Sun,
The issuance of arrest warrants for Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel and the Jewish state’s former defense minister, Yoav Gallant, along with an arrest warrant for a Hamas leader will go down in history as a marker of the illogic of multilateral law enforcement. It sets the stage for what will be a long-overdue effort, likely taking years, to curb and dismantle the International Criminal Court at the Hague. It beckons the incoming Trump administration to lead in such an effort.
Early indications are that the incoming administration understands the stakes of this struggle. President Trump’s nominee for national security adviser, Congressman Mike Waltz, took to X to offer a blast of moral clarity. He writes that “The ICC has no credibility … Israel has lawfully defended its people & borders from genocidal terrorists. You can expect a strong response to the antisemitic bias of the ICC & UN come January.” Trump takes office January 20….
For those sensible souls who want the ICC to be cut down to size after its latest ultra-vires act, and then eliminated altogether, January 20 can’t come fast enough.