Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) appeared to suggest that President Biden should not have reversed former President Donald Trump’s decision to impose sanctions on the ICC.
“Obviously, look, hindsight 20/20, we are where we are today,” Moskowitz told “Fox News Sunday” when asked if Biden, 81, should’ve left them in place.
Jared Moskowitz was hopeful that Congress would pass bipartisan sanctions against the ICC. Getty Images
“I’m for putting those sanctions back in place. I’m for Congress acting in a bipartisan basis to go after the ICC.”
Trump’s administration slapped sanctions against top ICC officials in September 2020 amid an investigation into alleged US war crimes in Afghanistan. Biden’s administration then lifted those sanctions the following year.
Moskowitz slammed the ICC after one of its prosecutors sought an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant last week.
“This is totally political. The ICC is irrelevant. They have no jurisdiction. We might as well call them the Harry Potter Ministry of Magic,” he quipped.
“This is pressure, unfortunately from the international community that wants to see no more Israel and they’re using the ICC.”
Last week, ICC prosecutor Karim Khan announced that his office would pursue arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant as well as Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, Ismail Haniyeh and Mohammed Deif over the Israel-Hamas war.
Karim Khan’s announcement drew fierce blowback from the US. Anadolu via Getty Images
Like the US, Israel is not a member of the ICC. Technically, a judge must first evaluate Khan’s request for an arrest warrant before it becomes official.
Nonetheless, the move was met with swift bipartisan and bicameral condemnation from members of Congress as well as a sharp rebuke from the White House.
Should the judge grant the warrant, Netanyahu could be at risk of arrest if he travels to any of the 124 ICC member countries.
Netanyahu and Gallant oversaw Israel’s response to the bloody Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas surprise attack that killed at least 1,200 Israelis.
Moskowitz, a pro-Israel Democrat, highlighted the slew of countries that the ICC refrained from targeting, despite allegations of human rights abuses.
“When [Syrian leader Bashar al] Assad killed 300,000 civilians using chemical weapons…did the ICC go after Assad? No, they didn’t because they said Syria was not a party to the ICC,” he said.
President Biden quickly stressed that the US doesn’t recognize the ICC’s jurisdiction after the announcement last week. AP
“Have they gone after China? No, the ICC has specifically said China is not a party to the ICC. But is Israel a party of the ICC? They are not, and yet they are now going after Israel.”
Congressional leaders indicated last week that legislation to penalize the ICC over its arrest warrant push is in the works.
“I think the United States needs to respond in a strong bipartisan way, which is why you’re seeing Democrats and Republicans in the House and the Senate and the Biden administration coming together,” Moskowitz said.
Both chambers are on recess this week but are set to reconvene in June.
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