Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has welcomed the decree of US President Donald Trump to impose sanctions against officials of the International Criminal Court, AFP reported.

"This court is politicised and obsessed with carrying out a headhunt against Israel and the United States as well as other democratic countries that respect human rights, but turns a blind eye to the world's worst human rights offenders, including the terrorist regime in Iran," Netanyahu said at a press conference.

He accused the ICC of fabricating accusations against Israel by claiming that Jews living in their historic homeland establishes a war crime.

"This is ridiculous. Shame on them."

The decision of the chief prosecutor of the Hague court in December 2019 to start a full investigation of alleged war crimes in the Palestinian territories provoked a fierce reaction from Israel and a conviction from the US.

Netanyahu said this decision is a 'political tool' against the Jewish state.

Earlier, US President Donald Trump signed a decree imposing sanctions against some persons involved in an investigation by the International Criminal Court on whether war crimes committed by the US military took place in Afghanistan.

As explained in the White House, Trump’s decree provides for economic sanctions against the ICC staff, directly involved in any investigation and trial efforts against the US troops without the US consent. It also provides for the extension of visa restrictions for court employees and their relatives.