Blinken explains why the US believes ICC has no jurisdiction over the war in Gaza

The US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US has long opposed the ICC's investigation into the war in Gaza because it believes the court “has no jurisdiction over this matter.”

Explaining the Biden administration's position, Blinken said the ICC was "established by its state parties as a court of limited jurisdiction."

"Those limits are rooted in principles of complementarity, which do not appear to have been applied here amid the prosecutor’s rush to seek these arrest warrants rather than allowing the Israeli legal system a full and timely opportunity to proceed," he said, adding that the ICC prosecutor deviated from the usual legal process by applying for the arrest warrants.

"In other situations, the prosecutor deferred to national investigations and worked with states to allow them time to investigate. The prosecutor did not afford the same opportunity to Israel, which has ongoing investigations into allegations against its personnel,” Blinken said.