The U.S. Department of State announced on August 20 (local time) that it will impose sanctions on four judges and prosecutors of the International Criminal Court (ICC), stating that this action is "in response to the ICC's ongoing threats against Americans and Israelis."
The ICC officials subject to these sanctions are two judges-Kimberly Prost (Canada) and Nicolas Guillou (France)-and two prosecutors-Najat Shamim Khan (Fiji) and Mame Mandiaye Niang (Senegal).
Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a statement on the same day, saying, "These individuals are foreign nationals who have been directly involved in ICC activities to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute American or Israeli nationals without the consent of those countries."
Secretary Rubio emphasized, "The United States has been clear and consistent in opposing the politicization and abuse of power by the ICC, its disregard for our national sovereignty, and its unlawful judicial overreach. The ICC has become a national security threat, serving as a tool for legal attacks against the United States and our close ally Israel."
He continued, "We maintain the U.S. government's policy of taking any measures deemed necessary to protect our soldiers, sovereignty, and allies from the ICC's illegal and baseless activities. I also urge the many countries that have gained freedom at the cost of great American sacrifice, as well as those that still support the ICC, to reject the claims of this broken institution."
On February 6, President Donald Trump signed an executive order sanctioning the ICC in response to the issuance of arrest warrants for Israeli government leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Based on this order, the U.S. has since imposed sanctions on both internal and external ICC officials. In June, four ICC judges were also designated for sanctions.
Prime Minister Netanyahu welcomed the move, stating, "This is a firm response to the false and slanderous campaign against Israel and the Israeli military and a measure to uphold truth and justice."
The ICC expressed strong regret in a statement, calling the sanctions "a blatant attack on the independence of a fair judicial institution operating under the mandate of its 125 member states."
The ICC further stated, "We stand in strong solidarity with our members and with those who have suffered unimaginable atrocities. The ICC will continue to carry out its mission undeterred by any restrictions, pressure, or threats, strictly adhering to the legal framework adopted by its member states."
The ICC is a permanent international tribunal established to prosecute individuals who have committed war crimes, genocide, and other crimes against humanity worldwide. The United States and Israel are not member states of the ICC. When an arrest warrant was requested for Prime Minister Netanyahu in May of last year, Israel protested, stating that it is not under ICC jurisdiction. However, at that time, the ICC clarified that since Palestine signed the Rome Statute in 2015, it has jurisdiction over incidents occurring in 'Palestinian territories (Gaza Strip and West Bank).'
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