HJRES 89: Calling on the President to continue to support and fully participate in negotiations at the United Nations to conclude an international agreement to establish an international criminal court.

Congress: 105 · Status: active · Israel/Palestine classification: neutral

Data (JSON) — machine-readable record of this bill (identifiers, sponsor, classification, actions, and the member-by-member vote breakdown).

Official record on Congress.gov — full text, actions, and cosponsor history for HJRES 89.

Sponsor: Kennedy, Patrick J. (D-RI)

Summary

Calls for the President, acting through the permanent U.S. representatives to the United Nations (UN), to: (1) continue to support and fully participate in negotiations at the UN and especially in the preparatory committee to establish an international criminal court with jurisdiction over serious international crimes, including war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity; and (2) provide any assistance necessary to expedite the establishment of such a court. Requires the President to report to the Congress on establishment of the court.

Editorial Explainer

This resolution asks the President to actively support and participate in United Nations negotiations to create an International Criminal Court with power to prosecute war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity worldwide. It also requires the President to report back to Congress on the court's establishment.

Why it matters

While the resolution does not mention Israel or Palestine, an International Criminal Court with jurisdiction over war crimes and crimes against humanity could theoretically investigate conduct by any nation or armed group. The bill's neutral classification reflects its broad, non-regional focus on global accountability mechanisms rather than any targeted policy on Middle Eastern actors.

Cosponsors (36)