Former US President Donald Trump confirmed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should not be arrested while in the United States, regardless of existing international warrants. On Monday, Trump stated that Netanyahu would not be arrested under any circumstances during his time in America. Trump framed his viewpoint by contrasting Netanyahu’s efforts against the Islamic Republic of Iran, which he accused of killing 52,000 innocent protesters and targeting US soldiers and others for 47 years. According to Trump, the only individuals who should face arrest are those responsible for ushering Iran into this “unprecedented spiral of death and destruction,” calling it a problem that previous presidents should have solved years ago.
The discussion surrounding Netanyahu’s potential arrest recently gained renewed momentum from New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani. Mamdani reported that his city’s legal department is currently intensively reviewing the possibility of arresting Netanyahu should he visit the US metropolis, perhaps for the UN General Assembly in September. Mamdani declared that Prime Minister Netanyahu belongs in The Hague, labeling him a war criminal who has been indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC). He added that this assessment would be widely shared given the actions Netanyahu has taken in recent years.
The ICC issued an arrest warrant in 2024 against Netanyahu and other Israeli politicians, accusing them of committing war crimes during the Gaza war. However, both Trump and his predecessor, Joe Biden, have publicly condemned the ICC warrant. The United States has not ratified the Rome Statute, which mandates that member states detain individuals subject to ICC warrants.
Under the Trump administration, opposition to the ICC has intensified. Foreign Minister Marco Rubio recently vowed to “dismantle” the court, accusing it of waging a “war against our country”-not through bullets or missiles, but through “the power of so-called international law.”
