Trump ordered asset freezes and journey bans in opposition to ICC officers, workers and their relations.
President Donald Trump has slapped sanctions on the Worldwide Legal Courtroom (ICC), accusing the physique of abusing Israel and the USA.
The US chief signed an government order late on Thursday that locations monetary and visa restrictions on ICC employees and anybody helping ICC investigations in opposition to the US and its allies.
The order accuses the ICC of “illegitimate and baseless actions concentrating on America and our shut ally Israel”, the White Home stated.
The transfer coincided with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s go to to the US. The ICC in November issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu, in addition to former Israeli Protection Minister Yoav Gallant and a senior Hamas official, accusing them of warfare crimes within the warfare in Gaza.
Trump’s order acknowledged The Hague-based courtroom had “abused its energy” by issuing the warrants for the Israelis.
The White Home outlined Israel as “a democratic state whose navy strictly adheres to the legal guidelines of warfare”.
“The actions taken by the Worldwide Legal Courtroom in opposition to Israel and the USA set a harmful precedent,” it continued, accusing the ICC of “malign behaviour that threatens to violate American sovereignty and undermine nationwide safety and international coverage”.
The names of people focused by the sanctions weren’t instantly launched, however earlier sanctions issued throughout Trump’s first time period had been aimed on the prosecutor and her aide who ran an ICC investigation into alleged warfare crimes by US troops in Afghanistan.
The ICC stated that the order seeks to “hurt its unbiased and neutral judicial work,” and pledged to “proceed offering justice and hope to thousands and thousands of harmless victims of atrocities the world over”.
“We name on our 125 States Events, civil society and all nations of the world to face united for justice and elementary human rights,” it added.
The transfer additionally provoked expressions of alarm from world wide.
European Council President Antonio Costa stated the sanctions “undermine the worldwide legal justice system as an entire”.
Sanctioning the ICC threatens the Courtroom’s independence and undermines the worldwide legal justice system as an entire. https://t.co/zk0lsnB1p0
— António Costa (@eucopresident) February 7, 2025
The Netherlands, the ICC’s host nation, stated it “regrets” the order, declaring that the courtroom’s work is “important within the battle in opposition to impunity”. Amnesty Worldwide labelled the transfer “reckless”.
The sanctions are a present of help after Netanyahu’s go to to the White Home, throughout which Trump introduced a plan for the US to “take over” Gaza and transfer Palestinians to different Center Jap international locations.
The UN and authorized specialists have stated the plan could be unlawful beneath worldwide regulation. Forcible displacement can be a criminal offense beneath the ICC’s governing Rome Statute.
The 125-member ICC is a everlasting courtroom that may prosecute people for warfare crimes, crimes in opposition to humanity, genocide and aggression in opposition to the territory of member states or by their nationals.
The US, China, Russia and Israel usually are not members.
Israel praised the sanctions ordered on the “so-called ‘worldwide legal courtroom’”. Overseas Minister Gideon Saar stated on X that the ICC’s actions had been “immoral and haven’t any authorized foundation”.