Washington — President Donald Trump’s administration on Wednesday imposed sanctions on two judges and two prosecutors at the International Criminal Court (ICC), as Washington kept up its pressure on the war tribunal over its targeting of Israeli leaders.
Washington designated Nicolas Yann Guillou of France, Nazhat Shameem Khan of Fiji, Mame Mandiaye Niang of Senegal and Kimberley Prost of Canada, according to the US treasury and state department.
In a statement, US secretary of state Marco Rubio called the court “a national security threat that has been an instrument for lawfare” against the US and Israel.
“United States has been clear and steadfast in our opposition to the ICC’s politicisation, abuse of power, disregard for our national sovereignty, and illegitimate judicial overreach”, Rubio said.
The ICC said on Wednesday it deplored the move. “These sanctions are a flagrant attack against the independence of an impartial judicial institution which operates under the mandate from 125 states parties from all regions. They constitute also an affront against the court’s states parties, the rules-based international order and, above all, millions of innocent victims across the world. The ICC will continue fulfilling mandates in strict accordance with its legal framework, without regard to any pressure or threat,” its statement said.
ICC judges issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Israeli defence chief Yoav Gallant and Hamas leader Ibrahim al-Masri last November for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity during the Gaza conflict.
Guillou is an ICC judge who presided over a pretrial panel that issued the arrest warrant for Netanyahu. Khan and Niang are the court’s two deputy prosecutors.
The move comes less than three months after the administration took the unprecedented step of slapping sanctions on four separate ICC judges, saying they have engaged in ICC’s “illegitimate and baseless actions” targeting the US and close ally Israel.
The ICC, which had slammed the move in June, describing it as an attempt to undermine the independence of the judicial institution, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The new sanctions represent a serious escalation that will likely impede the functioning of the court and the prosecutor's office as they deal with major cases, including war crime allegations against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.
In March 2020, prosecutors opened an investigation in Afghanistan that included looking into possible crimes by US troops, but since 2021, it has deprioritised the role of the US and focused on alleged crimes committed by the Afghan government and the Taliban forces.
The ICC, which was established in 2002, has international jurisdiction to prosecute genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in member states or if a situation is referred by the UN Security Council.
Though the ICC has jurisdiction over war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide in its 125 member countries, some nations, including the US, China, Russia, and Israel, do not recognise its authority. I
It has high-profile war crimes investigations under way into the Israel-Hamas conflict and Russia’s war in Ukraine, as well as in Sudan, Myanmar, the Philippines, and Venezuela.
The sanctions freeze any US assets the individuals may have and essentially cut them off from the US financial system.
Netanyahu’s office issued a statement welcoming the US sanctions.
The Trump administration’s dislike of the court goes back to his first term. In 2020, Washington imposed sanctions on then-prosecutor Fatou Bensouda and one of her top aides over the courts work on Afghanistan.
Update: August 20 2025
This story has more reaction and background information.
Reuters
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