Why are Netanyahu and his US patrons rattled by possible ICC arrest warrants?

By Shabbir Rizvi 

More than 200 days into the unprecedented and game-changing Operation Al Aqsa Storm, the Israeli regime finds itself in more troubled waters, increasingly staring at nothingness.

The occupying regime has not been able to achieve any of its military goals in Gaza. On the other hand, the Axis of Resistance has been able to push it into a corner with fierce and indomitable resistance from Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen, and of course the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Worldwide, the image of the Tel Aviv regime, and yes, the Israeli settler-colonial society itself, has been in tatters. And things can always get worse - especially for the guilty.

Now, the International Criminal Court (ICC)has swung into action, raising the possibility of issuing arrest warrants for Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu as well as other Israeli regime officials - with serious charges of war crimes against Palestinians in Gaza.

The charges are serious enough for Israel’s primary political, economic, and military backer - the United States - to condemn the same court that it once praised as fair and indispensable. 

Israel’s relationship with the ICC was plagued from the very beginning in 2001. The occupation from the get-go opposed the establishment of the court because of its definitions of war crimes and what can constitute criminal behavior.

It was briefly a party to the Rome Statute (entities that signed on to ratify and recognize the ICC) but in 2002 the regime decided to sever its ties with the court completely. 

According to a UN press release on the establishment of the ICC and those who voted in favor and against it, “Israel has reluctantly cast a negative vote. It fails to comprehend why it has been considered necessary to insert into the list of the most heinous and grievous war crimes the action of transferring population into occupied territory.”

Shortly after this statement, Israel rejected the ICC and no longer is a supportive party to it. 

Since October 7 last year, over 34,500 Palestinians have been slaughtered by Israel - and hundreds of thousands more have been displaced - the majority of them being women and children.

Numerous war crimes committed by Israeli soldiers have been documented  - which include torturing Palestinians, indiscriminate bombings of entire neighborhoods, and most recently the unearthing of mass graves at Al-Shifa Hospital and Al-Nasser Hospital - with many corpses handbound and wearing medical gear - implying the systematic execution of medical personnel.

The possibility of a formal war crimes charge at the ICC has sent ripples of panic and fear into the Tel Aviv regime, specifically the ruling extremist coalition led by Netanyahu. 

According to Zionist media, after news broke out of the possibility of arrest warrants, Netanyahu went into a panic mode and began making phone calls, specifically to Washington.

For the uninitiated, any country that is a recognized member of the ICC must do what it can to turn in Netanyahu and other Israeli officials if charged. Travel to these countries would be impossible for charged Israeli regime officials, and failure to release the charged individuals into custody by possible future Israeli officials could lead to more charges.

An Israeli official reportedly was quoted as saying by Zionist media outlets: “Where is [US President Joe] Biden? Why is he quiet while Israel will potentially be thrown under the bus?”

Clearly, the regime is relying on the US political (declining) hegemony to influence a court decision that is supposedly representative of all nations around the world. 

The Israeli PM is already under fire from settlers in the occupied territories - weekly protests against his regime numbered in the thousands long before the start of the Al Aqsa Storm.

The genocidal operations on one part of Israeli settler-colonial society have earned him more condemnation for failing to retrieve Israeli captives - all while Israeli officials assert that if he does not succeed in invading Rafah - with or without a hostage deal - he will be ousted. 

The Biden administration took no time to condemn the possible charges, slamming an international organ that it once praised for issuing a similar charge for Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The hypocrisy was laid bare for all to see: When the ICC acts in favor of imperialist interests, Washington praises it as a fair organ. When the ICC acts against their interests, US officials quote Israeli officials almost verbatim: “As we have publicly said many times, the ICC has no jurisdiction in this situation and we do not support its investigation."

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova took to Telegram to point out American hypocrisy: “...the American political system does not recognize the legitimacy of this structure [ICC] in relation to itself and its satellites.”

US Congress moved directly to threaten the ICC over its possible arrest warrant. House Speaker Mike Johnson called on Joe Biden and his administration to “immediately and unequivocally demand that the ICC stand down" and "use every available tool to prevent such an abomination."

The harsh language employed goes to show that the American imperialists are in just as much of a panic as their Israeli regime counterparts are. 

Since the ICC is now challenging the US colonial project in West Asia, Washington has upped the ante to discredit the ICC entirely by using two strategies - the first being discrediting the ICC’s jurisdiction into Palestine. 

The United States’ main defense lies within Israel not being the signatory to ICC in the first place - therefore legally challenging the court’s jurisdiction. This is a defense it has used several times throughout the years whenever the ICC has challenged Israel.

In 2021, the Biden administration released a similar statement to the one this week, condemning any investigation whatsoever into what it calls the “Palestinian Situation” by the ICC. 

Note that the US is specifically using Israel as a non-signatory as a method to discredit the ICC. Palestine is in fact a signatory to the Rome Statute. The ICC accepted “The State of Palestine” as a member in 2015.

This makes it all the more interesting that the US praised the ICC for slapping Putin with war crimes charges (of a completely different nature than Netanyahu). Russia also did not sign onto the Rome Statute, just like Israel.

Yet one of them has ICC jurisdiction and the other does not. US hypocrisy has no bounds! 

The second strategy would be called in when push comes to shove. If the ICC persists in pursuing Israel, and indeed, if it does charge Israeli officials with war crimes, the US will move to convince other countries to break off from the Rome Statute.

Representative Brad Sherman states: "We have to think about talking to some of the countries that have ratified [the treaty] as to whether they want to support the organization.” 

There are plenty of US allies or satellite regimes that are signed onto the Rome Statute. The ICC in the peak era of US hegemony was mostly unchallenged by the collective West. The US could enjoy its status as a hegemon and use the ICC as an enforcer of its own “rules-based order.” 

However, as contradictions have sharpened between the United States and the rest of the world, the hegemony it once held is now unraveling. Though the ICC is far from the answer to establishing justice for Palestine, the very fact that it has been challenged by the US demonstrates the US’ declining status as a world leader and power. 

It was almost exactly a year ago when the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Putin - and all US officials cheered the decision. Now, they are horrified. What changed during this time? 

The gruesome, unfettered and outright genocidal behavior of the Israeli regime - further unapologetically supported by the United States ruling class - has driven a wedge between what is considered an international norm and what global imperialism demands.

The very institutions once enforced by the US are now slowly forced into introspection. Is there any legitimacy to be enjoyed for an institution enforcing the will of an unpopular, out-of-control, and declining hegemon? 

Shabbir Rizvi is a Chicago-based political analyst with a focus on US internal security and foreign policy.

(The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of Press TV)

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