The United States government has imposed new sanctions on the president of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and one of its senior lawyers, Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed on Tuesday. The measures target ICC President Tomoko Akane, a Japanese judge, and Abdoulaye Seye, a Senegalese national serving as a senior trial attorney at the court.
Sanctions Details and Legal Basis
According to Reuters, the sanctions were issued under an executive order signed by President Donald Trump last year, which specifically authorised action against ICC officials. The penalties freeze any assets the two officials hold in the United States and effectively cut them off from the US financial system, a significant restriction given how closely most international banks are linked to American financial institutions.
The Treasury Department also issued a general licence on Tuesday allowing existing transactions involving Akane and Seye to be wound down by September 17. Rubio stated in a statement: "These individuals have directly engaged in efforts by the ICC to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute officials whose government has not consented to ICC jurisdiction."
Impact on ICC Officials and Court Operations
Seye belongs to the prosecution team that applied for an arrest warrant against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and has been nominated for election as an ICC judge. Akane had previously cautioned in December that American sanctions would "rapidly undermine the court's operations in all situations and cases, and jeopardize its very existence."
The court pushed back firmly, arguing in a statement that the sanctions weaken rather than defend the rule of law. "When judicial actors are threatened for applying the law, it is the international legal order itself that is placed at risk," the ICC said. The Hague-based court was founded in 2002 to prosecute war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. The United States is not a member.
Broader US Campaign Against the ICC
Tuesday's action is part of a continuing campaign by the Trump administration against the court. Washington previously sanctioned several other ICC prosecutors and judges, pointing to arrest warrants issued for Netanyahu and former Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, as well as a past investigation into the conduct of US troops in Afghanistan.
Rubio said last month that the administration planned to intensify its pressure on the institution, including a diplomatic push to persuade other countries to withdraw from it. At least five countries have already responded to that call. He argued the court posed a threat to US service members and personnel involved in immigration enforcement and anti-narcotics operations.
Three ICC judges launched a legal challenge against the Trump administration in June, arguing the sanctions were unlawful. Separate lawsuits from advocacy groups claim the broader US campaign against the court violates the constitutional rights of organisations working to hold perpetrators of atrocities accountable.
Legit.ng earlier reported that three judges from the International Criminal Court (ICC) have launched a lawsuit against United States President Donald Trump and his administration, challenging sanctions imposed on them last year. The judges argue that the measures were unlawful and designed to punish them for their judicial work. On June 24, judges Kimberly Prost of Canada, Solomy Balungi Bossa of Uganda, and Reine Adelaide Sophie Alapini-Gansou of Benin filed the lawsuit in a federal court in Manhattan.
