ICC Blasts US Sanctions as 'Flagrant Attack' on Judicial Independence

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has criticized the Donald Trump administration's sanctions against ICC President Tomoko Akane as a "flagrant attack on the independence of the judicial institution."

In a statement issued on the 19th local time, the ICC stated, "Such measures targeting judges, prosecutors, and staff undermine the rule of law. If judicial actors are threatened for applying the law, what is put at risk is the international legal order itself."

The ICC added, "We stand firmly by our staff and the victims of atrocities," vowing to faithfully carry out its mandate without being shaken by these sanctions.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa emphasized in a joint statement, "The ICC contributes to delivering justice for victims of the world's most horrific crimes. To perform this vital work, it must be able to operate independently and without outside pressure."

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk called for the U.S. sanctions to be withdrawn, urging countries to "protect court officials who have become targets of retaliation."

Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen, whose country hosts the ICC headquarters, stated that he would meet with President Akane to discuss ways to provide continued support.

President Akane is already on a wanted list by Russian authorities after issuing an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin in March 2023 on war crimes charges.

The U.S. government placed President Akane and Principal Appeals Counsel Abdallaye Seye on its sanctions list the previous day, stating that they "have been directly engaged in the ICC's efforts to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute officials of countries that have not consented to its jurisdiction."

Since February of last year, shortly after taking office, the Trump administration has been successively sanctioning ICC officials over the issuance of an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Counsel Seye had previously handled the work related to requesting the arrest warrant for Netanyahu.

Neither the United States nor Israel is a state party to the Rome Statute, the treaty establishing the ICC.

However, the ICC issued the arrest warrant for Netanyahu based on a provision of the Rome Statute stating that the court has jurisdiction if crimes are committed on the territory of a state party.

Palestine joined the ICC in 2015.

ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan, who requested the arrest warrant for Prime Minister Netanyahu, was placed on the U.S. sanctions list in February of last year and was dismissed last month after allegations of sexual misconduct surfaced.

The ICC stated that with the addition of President Akane and others, 9 out of 18 judges, both deputy prosecutors, one former prosecutor, and one staff member have become targets of U.S. sanctions.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.