<\/p>\n
The sanctions, announced by the US government, target ICC President Tomoko Akane and senior prosecutor Abdoulaye Seye, escalating a dispute between Washington and the Hague-based court over investigations involving US allies and other international cases.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
In a statement, the ICC said the sanctions undermine the court’s ability to carry out its mandate. “These sanctions are a flagrant attack against the independence of an impartial judicial institution which operates pursuant to the mandate conferred by its States Parties from across regions,” the ICC said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Established under the Rome Statute in 2002, the ICC prosecutes individuals accused of genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and the crime of aggression. Although it works closely with the United Nations (UN), the court operates independently and is not a UN institution.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The latest measures follow earlier US sanctions imposed on former ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan, who was dismissed from the position earlier this year.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused the court of exceeding its mandate. “The Trump Administration has been clear: the International Criminal Court is a corrupt and fatally politicised supranational court that has maliciously abused its authority and exceeded its mandate,” Rubio said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The dispute intensified after the ICC issued arrest warrants in November 2024 for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes linked to the conflict in Gaza.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
According to reports, Seye has also been involved in investigations relating to Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The sanctions mean several ICC officials now face restrictions on financial transactions involving US citizens and may encounter broader limitations within the international financial system.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The UN expressed concern over the latest developments.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
UN Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres, through spokesperson St\u00e9phane Dujarric, said the Secretary-General was seriously concerned by the sanctions and the continued targeting of ICC officials.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Dujarric said the UN regards the ICC as an important institution within the international justice system. “The United Nations considers the ICC a key pillar of international criminal justice and the Secretary-General very much respects its work,” Dujarric said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The ICC warned that attempts to pressure judges and prosecutors could undermine the broader international legal order. “When judges are threatened for applying the law, the international legal order itself is placed at risk,” the court said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The court also argued that sanctions affect victims seeking justice for serious international crimes. “Threats and coercive measures also impact the ability of victims to seek justice, as they turn to the court when all other avenues have been exhausted,” the ICC said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Despite the sanctions, the court said it would continue operating independently and carrying out its mandate with the support of member states. “The ICC values the consistent demonstrations of solidarity of States Parties, civil society and all those who support the rule of law and justice for the victims of international crimes,” the court said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
–UN\/ChannelAfrica–<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":43319,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"news-type":[26],"class_list":["post-43298","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-general_news","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"The International Criminal Court (ICC) has strongly criticised a new round of United States (US) sanctions targeting senior court officials, describing the measures as a direct threat to judicial independence and international justice.","published_date":"","news_description":"The International Criminal Court (ICC) has strongly criticised a new round of United States (US) sanctions targeting senior court officials, describing the measures as a direct threat to judicial independence and international justice.","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/43298","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/43298\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43300,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/43298\/revisions\/43300"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43319"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43298"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=43298"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}