US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has announced a new round of sanctions aimed directly at the International Criminal Court, rather than at officials or organizations supporting the court as in previous rounds. The move marks the latest escalation by the administration of President Donald Trump, which says it is pursuing a "whole-of-government" approach to dismantling the tribunal.
"We will ban transactions with this illegitimate court, cut off its resources and cripple its ability to operate against us, because our message is clear: the United States and the American people are not subject to the jurisdiction of this so-called fake ICC," Rubio said in a video posted on social media. "Either the ICC will end its threats, or we will end the ICC."
To justify the action, the administration cited the court's ongoing investigation into abuses in Afghanistan, which could implicate US military personnel and intelligence officers, as well as ICC arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes in Gaza.
Before Friday's move, the United States had sanctioned ICC judges and prosecutors, a UN special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, and Palestinian human rights groups that provided evidence to the court.
Several human rights organizations have challenged the sanctions in US federal court, arguing that restricting how American citizens interact with the court infringes on constitutional freedoms. Sanctioned ICC judges have also filed legal challenges in the United States.
Speaking to Reuters on Friday, Deputy Prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan said the sanctions "must be condemned."
"The sanctions are intended to undermine the international rule of law and the work that an independent judicial institution is doing," Khan said. "Our work will continue across all situations, investigations and prosecutions."
The United States and Israel are not parties to the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the court's jurisdiction. However, the court has long held that abuses committed by US or Israeli nationals on the territory of ICC member states can be prosecuted. To date, the court has never sought to prosecute any American citizen.
Human rights observers say the US pressure campaign could have far-reaching effects on the court's investigations, particularly the network of local organizations and investigators on which it relies to build cases. Washington has also urged other countries to withdraw from the court, suggesting it will weigh allies' ties to the tribunal when considering foreign aid.
That call coincides with wariness among some ICC members over what they call the unfair application of international law, with countries in the Global South more likely to face legal accountability. In July, Chad and Venezuela took steps to withdraw from the court, following Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.
Friday's announcement came just hours after the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to South African lawyer and former ICC judge Navi Pillay. The judges said the award came at a time when "judges and international legal institutions are being politically attacked."
"An international legal system where war criminals are held accountable and victims of abuses see justice done is a prerequisite for a peaceful world," they said.
