US Expands Sanctions on ICC President and Senior Trial Lawyer
Al Jazeera Staff
The Trump administration has imposed sanctions on ICC President Tomoko Akane and senior trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye, deepening its campaign against the court. Secretary of State Marco Rubio framed the move as protecting Americans from an "illegitimate" tribunal, while the ICC and its supporters decry it as an assault on international justice.
The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has added the president of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and a senior lawyer of the tribunal to its sanctions list. The move came on Tuesday, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio explaining that the expanded sanctions are part of a campaign to “dismantle” the Hague-based international court.
“The Trump administration is sanctioning ICC President Tomoko Akane and Senior Trial Lawyer Abdoulaye Seye in our unwavering mission to protect Americans from this illegitimate court,” Rubio wrote on social media. He also stressed that Americans will never be sent abroad for trial on fabricated charges.
Akane, a Japanese judge, has served as ICC president since her election in March 2024. Seye, a Senegalese national, is a senior trial lawyer at the court.
The sanctions freeze all assets of the two individuals in the United States and restrict U.S.-based entities from doing business with them, effective September 17. Previously, Washington had sanctioned more than a dozen ICC judges and prosecutors, prompting financial institutions to sever ties and isolating them from much of the international banking system.
The U.S. administration has also imposed financial restrictions on human rights groups and figures such as UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese, citing their cooperation with the ICC.
In June, three ICC judges sued the Trump administration over the sanctions, calling them an “arbitrary and capricious” means to curb the court’s judicial independence. The ICC itself condemned the administration’s efforts as undermining the rule of law.
“When judicial figures are threatened for applying the law, the international legal order itself is put at risk,” the court said.
The Trump administration argues that the ICC overstepped its mandate by opening investigations into actions by the United States and its close ally Israel. Neither country is a party to the Hague-based court. However, ICC supporters contend the court has jurisdiction to investigate and prosecute crimes committed on the territory of its 125 member states, even if the perpetrators are not nationals of those states.
The ICC’s mandate covers grave international crimes, including genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. In 2020, the court opened an investigation into alleged U.S. war crimes in Afghanistan, where Washington waged a decades-long war until 2021. More recently, in 2024, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes in Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.
The Trump administration has opposed investigations into both U.S. and Israeli actions. In July, Rubio issued a statement calling the court an “unacceptable threat” to the sovereignty of nations and vowing to dismantle it. Several countries, including Chad and Venezuela, have since announced plans to withdraw from the ICC, with critics suggesting U.S. influence is a driving factor.
In Tuesday’s statement, Rubio intensified the criticism, hinting that stronger measures could follow. “The Trump administration has made clear: the International Criminal Court is a corrupt and politicized supranational court that has abused its authority and exceeded its mandate. We will not tolerate its assault on state sovereignty,” he declared.
