The U.S. plans to impose sanctions on the ISS. What prompted this decision?

The U.S. House of Representatives has voted to impose sanctions against officials of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in response to an arrest warrant issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. American lawmakers will prohibit entry into the country and freeze the assets of ICC officials involved in investigations against U.S. allies.

The measure received support from representatives of both major parties, with a total of 247 lawmakers voting "in favor." This information is reported by CNN.

The bill aims to counter any attempts by the court to investigate or prosecute protected U.S. persons and their allies. The Republican majority in Congress reintroduced the bill after the previous Senate did not support it. Forty-two Democrats joined the Republicans in this effort.

The bill is now set to be sent to the Senate for a final vote. If approved by the upper chamber, sanctions against ICC officials will take effect.

In November 2024, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu, former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and several Hamas leaders, accusing them of war crimes.

Previously, the Israeli ambassador criticized the arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant, calling such actions "an infringement on the right to self-defense." Netanyahu referred to the potential arrest warrants for Israeli officials as "a historical-scale outrage."

At the same time, the German Foreign Ministry also criticized the decision of ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan, stating that it creates a false impression of equality between Israeli leadership and Hamas terrorists.

It should be noted that earlier, "Telegraph" reported that Netanyahu may ask Putin for an important favor. However, this has not been officially confirmed.