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THE HAGUE, Netherlands (CN) — The International Criminal Court on Friday slammed sanctions imposed against it by the United States, vowing to not allow the Trump administration to dictate its work.
In a move that may have wide-reaching consequences for The Hague-based court, the White House announced the unspecified sanctions on Thursday, citing “baseless” arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
The ICC condemned the move, writing in a statement, “The court stands firmly by its personnel and pledges to continue providing justice and hope to millions of innocent victims of atrocities across the world.”
U.S. President Donald Trump’s order has garnered widespread criticism. Amnesty International’s secretary general, Agnès Callamard in a statement called it “vindictive” and “aggressive.”
“It is a brutal step that seeks to undermine and destroy what the international community has painstakingly constructed over decades, if not centuries: global rules that are applicable to everyone and aim to deliver justice for all,” Callamard said.
“U.S. sanctions against ICC officials would be a gift to those around the globe responsible for mass atrocities. Sanctions are for human rights violators, not those working to hold rights abusers to account,” international justice director at Human Rights Watch Liz Everson said in a statement.
It’s unclear what the exact measures will be. Trump’s order allowed U.S. officials at the State and Treasury Department to select which individuals, or even the entire court, to sanction.
Many in The Hague had been preparing for such penalties.
In June 2024, the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation that would force any president to issue sanctions against the court, but the bill was blocked by Democrats in the Senate. A similar bill passed the House again in January.
“The court has been subjected to attacks seeking to undermine its legitimacy and ability to administer justice and realize international law and fundamental rights; coercive measures, threats, pressure and acts of sabotage,” ICC President Tomoko Akane said in her opening address to the court’s annual meeting in December.
European leaders also expressed their displeasure at the move.
“The ICC guarantees accountability for international crimes and gives a voice to victims worldwide. It must be able to freely pursue the fight against global impunity. Europe will always stand for justice and the respect of international law,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a statement.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, whose country has been very supportive of Israel, blasted Trump too.
“Sanctions are the wrong tool. They jeopardize an institution that is supposed to ensure that the dictators of this world cannot simply persecute people and start wars, and that is very important,” he told reporters on the campaign trail. Germany will go to the polls on Feb. 23.
The ICC’s host country of the Netherlands defended the institution. “The Netherlands regrets the executive order imposing sanctions on the ICC. The court’s work is essential in the fight against impunity,” Dutch foreign affairs minister Caspar Veldkamp said in a statement.
It is the second time Trump has punished the court for conducting investigations he disagrees with.
The previous Trump administration sanctioned Khan’s predecessor as well. In 2020, the White House slapped sanctions on Fatou Bensouda and another staff member for their involvement in an investigation into whether U.S. military personnel committed war crimes in Afghanistan.
President Joe Biden ended those sanctions shortly after coming into office in 2021.
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