Bill Summary

Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act

January 6, 2025
Karim A. A. Khan, the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court
Congress must impose sanctions on the ICC chief prosecutor and other senior court officials for their
outrageous politically motivated decisions. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

The Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act (H.R. 23) imposes sanctions on persons that aid efforts by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to prosecute Americans or Israelis.

In Nov. 2024, the ICC announced arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on baseless charges of “war crimes” and “crimes against humanity.”

President Biden rightfully rejected the false and outrageous charges. Now, Congress must respond by imposing penalties on those supporting the court’s illegitimate efforts.

Key Provisions:

  • Finds the ICC’s actions against Israel are “illegitimate and baseless” and “create a damaging precedent that threatens the United States, Israel, and all United States partners who have not submitted to the ICC’s jurisdiction.”
  • Requires the president to impose sanctions if the ICC is “engaging in any attempt to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute any protected persons.”
  • Protected persons are defined to include U.S. persons, or foreign persons from NATO or Major Non-NATO Ally countries that have not consented to the ICC’s jurisdiction.  
  • Sanctions are to be imposed only on those persons that have “directly engaged in or otherwise aided any effort by the ICC to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute a protected person.” Sanctions are further imposed on anyone who materially supports such efforts. The bill does not sanction the ICC itself.
  • Sanctions include an assets freeze and visa ban. Immediate family members of sanctioned individuals are also subject to the visa ban.
  • Provides the president flexibility to waive sanctions on a case-by-case basis if the waiver is determined to be vital to the national security interests of the United States.
  • Rescinds any U.S. funding to the ICC and prohibits future funding.
  • Authorizes the president to terminate sanctions if the ICC ceases to engage in efforts against all protected persons and has “permanently closed, withdrawn, ended and otherwise terminated” all such efforts.

The Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act is a reasonable and responsible reaction to the attack on our ally Israel. The legislation:

  • Is narrowly crafted to target those responsible for the illegitimate prosecution of Israeli leaders today, and potential future prosecutions of Americans and other allies.
  • Provides flexibility to the president to implement the law in a manner that ensures vital national security interests are protected.
  • Sends a strong message to the court that the United States will not sit idly by while Americans or our allies are unjustly attacked.
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