H.R. 23

119th CONGRESS 1st Session

To impose sanctions with respect to the International Criminal Court engaged in any effort to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute any protected person of the United States and its allies.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES · January 9, 2025

Table of contents

• H.R. 23
  • SEC. 1. Short title
  • SEC. 2. Findings
  • SEC. 3. Sanctions with respect to the international criminal court
  • SEC. 4. Rescission of funds for international criminal court
  • SEC. 5. Definitions

SEC. 1. Short title

• This Act may be cited as the Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act.

SEC. 2. Findings

• Congress finds the following:
  • The United States and Israel are not parties to the Rome Statute or members of the International Criminal Court (ICC), and therefore the ICC has no legitimacy or jurisdiction over the United States or Israel.
  • On May 20, 2024, the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, announced arrest warrant applications for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant and should be condemned in the strongest possible terms.
  • On November 21, 2024, the ICC’s Pre-Trial Chamber issued warrants for the arrest of Netanyahu and Gallant, which should be condemned in the strongest possible terms.
  • The bipartisan American Servicemembers’ Protection Act was enacted in 2002 to protect United States military personnel, United States officials, and officials and military personnel of certain allied countries against criminal prosecution by an international criminal court to which the United States is not party, stating, . In addition to exposing members of the Armed Forces of the United States to the risk of international criminal prosecution, the Rome Statute creates a risk that the President and other senior elected and appointed officials of the United States Government may be prosecuted by the International Criminal Court.
  • The ICC’s actions against Israel, including the preliminary examination and investigation of Israel and issuance of arrest warrants against Israeli officials, are illegitimate and baseless and create a damaging precedent that threatens the United States, Israel, and all United States partners who have not consented to the ICC’s jurisdiction.
  • The United States must oppose any action by the ICC against the United States, Israel, or any other ally of the United States that has not consented to ICC jurisdiction or is not a state party to the Rome Statute of the ICC.

SEC. 3. Sanctions with respect to the international criminal court

• (a) In general
  • Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and on an ongoing basis thereafter, if the International Criminal Court is engaging in any attempt to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute any protected person, the President shall impose—
    • the sanctions described in subsection (b) with respect to any foreign person the President determines—
      • has directly engaged in or otherwise aided any effort by the International Criminal Court to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute a protected person;
      • has materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of any effort by the International Criminal Court to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute a protected person; or
      • is owned or controlled by, or is currently acting or purports to have acted, directly or indirectly, for or on behalf of any person that directly engages in any effort by the International Criminal Court to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute a protected person; and
    • the sanctions described in subsection (b)(2) with respect to the immediate family members of each foreign person who is subject to sanctions pursuant to paragraph (1).
• (b) Sanctions described
  • The sanctions described in this subsection with respect to a foreign person described in subsection (a) are the following:
  • (1) Property blocking
    • The President shall exercise all of the powers granted by the International Emergency Economic Powers Act () to the extent necessary to block and prohibit all transactions in all property and interests in property of any foreign person described in subsection (a)(1) if such property and interests in property are in the United States, come within the United States, or are or come within the possession or control of a United States person. 50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.
  • (2) Aliens inadmissible for visas, admission, or parole
    • (A) Visas, admission, or parole
      • In the case of an alien described in subsection (a), the alien is—
        • (i) inadmissible to the United States;
        • (ii) ineligible to receive a visa or other documentation to enter the United States; and
        • (iii) otherwise ineligible to be admitted or paroled into the United States or to receive any other benefit under the Immigration and Nationality Act (). 8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.
    • (B) Current visas revoked
      • (i) The visa or other entry documentation of an alien described in subparagraph (A) shall be revoked, regardless of when such visa or other entry documentation was issued.
      • (ii) A revocation under clause (i) shall—
      • take effect immediately; and
      • automatically cancel any other valid visa or entry documentation that is in the alien’s possession.

SEC. 4. Rescission of funds for international criminal court

• (a) In general
  • Effective on the date of the enactment of this Act, any amounts appropriated for the International Criminal Court and available for obligation as of such date of enactment are hereby rescinded.
• (b) Prohibition on future appropriations
  • On and after the date of the enactment of this Act, no appropriated funds may be used for the International Criminal Court.

SEC. 5. Definitions

• In this Act:
  • The terms and have the meanings given those terms in section 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (). admitted alien 8 U.S.C. 1101
  • The term means— ally of the United States
  • The term means— appropriate congressional committees
  • The term means a person that is not a United States person. foreign person
  • The term , with respect to a foreign person, means the spouse, parent, sibling, or adult child of the person. immediate family member
  • The terms and have the meaning given those terms in section 2013 of the American Service-Members’ Protection Act (). International Criminal Court Rome Statute 22 U.S.C. 7432
  • The term means— protected person
  • The term means— United States person