Black Agenda Report
Black Agenda Report
News, commentary and analysis from the black left.

  • Home
  • Africa
  • African America
  • Education
  • Environment
  • International
  • Media and Culture
  • Political Economy
  • Radio
  • US Politics
  • War and Empire
  • omnibus

“Target Israel and we will target you”: U.S. Senators Play Schoolyard Bully Against the ICC
Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
08 May 2024
Karim Khan
Karim Khan KC, ICC Prosecutor (Photo by Yui Mok/PA Images via Getty Images)

The ICC recently revealed that U.S. Republican Senators sent a threatening letter to the ICC in response to Israel's concern that an arrest warrant may be issued against it. This pressure campaign on the ICC is but one piece of the United States' attempt to shield Israel from accountability for its crimes.

Despite the fact that the United States is not a member nation of the International Criminal Court (ICC), that organization has been under its sway from its inception. The ICC has only prosecuted Africans and a few Serbians who were accused of war crimes during the NATO-engineered breakup of the former Yugoslavia. The ICC has never issued an arrest warrant for Israel’s many documented war crimes.

After Israeli officials publicly expressed concern that the ICC might issue arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and other high-ranking Israeli officials, U.S. pressure began in earnest. Recently a letter to the ICC signed by twelve republican senators was made public. In the letter they expressed contempt for international law and openly stated their intention to punish the ICC if it acted against Israeli officials.

“Target Israel and we will target you” and “You have been warned,” are words that should create outrage around the world. Not only is the U.S. not an ICC member state, but during the George W. Bush administration congress passed what is known as the Hague Invasion Act, which prohibits U.S. citizens or even citizens of allied nations from being prosecuted and declares a right to invade the Hague and free any such person should they fall under the control of the ICC.

The letter says that ICC officials and their families will be sanctioned and barred from entering the U.S. if arrest warrants are issued for any Israeli officials. It is unlikely that the ICC will change course and suddenly prosecute Israelis but the letter is quite instructive. It exposes how the U.S. conducts itself around the world, as a bully which uses its power to control and to dominate.
Letter to ICCLetter to ICC signature page
Margaret Kimberley is the author of Prejudential: Black America and the Presidents. You can support her work on Patreon and also find it on the Twitter, Bluesky, and Telegram platforms. She can be reached via email at [email protected].

ICC
Israel
Genocide
Republicans

Do you need and appreciate Black Agenda Report articles. Please click on the DONATE icon, and help us out, if you can.


Related Stories

Caribbean Movement for Peace and Integration
Historic Genocide Case Heard in Barbados Supreme Court: Caribbean Movement for Peace and Integration Demands Accountability Over Gaza Atrocities
09 July 2025
Barbados’ Supreme Court is now at the center of a historic genocide case against Israel, as Caribbean activists demand their government sever ties
Black Alliance For Peace
FIFA and IOC Must Ban the United States and Israel from Hosting or Participating in International Sporting Events
02 July 2025
With an anticipated tens of thousands of international travelers for the World Cup and the Olympic Games, U.S.
Editors, The Black Agenda Review
POEM: The Beirut Jokebook, June Jordan, 1982
25 June 2025
“What did the Arab lady say to the Israeli tank?”
x
​​​​​​​ Ajamu Baraka, BAR editor and columnist
The Tactical Failure of Israel/U.S. Attacks on Iran Is Leading Both to a Strategic Disaster
25 June 2025
The U.S.
21st Century Wire Global Affairs
HARVARD REPORT: The Hidden Numbers Behind Gaza’s Real Death Toll
25 June 2025
A recent report prepared by Garb Yaakov, a Professor at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel, and published on The President & Fell
Progressive International
"Their aim is silence — ours is truth"
25 June 2025
Statement from the Sovereign Media collective, a new coalition of anti-imperialist media organizations, on the Israeli regime's assault on jour
Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
Tell Congress, No War on Iran!
18 June 2025
If Trump asks congress for approval to wage a war on Iran, he will probably get it. 
Black Alliance For Peace
The Middle East is On Fire Because Israeli and U.S. Imperialism Lit the Match
18 June 2025
Decades of U.S.
Sean Matthews
Arab Officials Say There is a Strong Likelihood US Will 'Directly' Join Israel in Attacking Iran
18 June 2025
Three informed Arab officials, in touch with both the US and Iran, tell Middle East Eye that the White House appears to be moving closer to 'ba
Palestine Chronicle Staff
Aid Queue Massacres Continue in Gaza as UN Warns of Mass Starvation
18 June 2025
Israeli occupation forces shot and killed several Palestinians on Sunday morning across various regions of the Gaza Strip, as the humanitarian

More Stories


  • Inae Oh
    What $100 Billion in New ICE Funding Would Look Like
    09 Jul 2025
    The staggering increase is difficult to process. These numbers will help.
  • Margaret Kimberley and Dimitri Lascaris
    Dimitri Lascaris , Margaret Kimberley, BAR Executive Editor and Senior Columnist
    Donald Trump's Big, Beautiful Con-Job w/ Margaret Kimberly
    09 Jul 2025
    This past week, the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives passed Donald Trump's signature budget bill, which Trump dubbed "One Big Beautiful Bill Act". Dimitri Lascaris spoke with Margaret…
  • BAR Radio Logo
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Black Agenda Radio July 4, 2025
    04 Jul 2025
    In this week’s segment, we discuss navigating celebrity culture and liberation politics. Also, organizers will convene in Philadelphia to mobilize on behalf of Mumia Abu Jamal. But first, we learn…
  • Legal Defense Fund
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    Birthright Citizenship and the Supreme Court
    04 Jul 2025
    On Inauguration Day, Donald Trump issued an Executive Order which stated that the federal government would require proof of parental citizenship or permanent residency in order to grant birthright…
  • Kalonji Changa
    Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
    The Struggle for Liberation Amid Celebrity Culture
    04 Jul 2025
    We are joined by Kalonji Changa, who is a co-founder of Black Power Media, founder of the FTP Movement, and co-author of the book Beyond Cop Cities: Dismantling State and Corporate-Funded Armies and…
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us