US Sanctions on ICC Put Global Justice at Risk (HRW)
The Trump administration’s decision to sanction the International Criminal Court (ICC) is an unprecedented assault on global justice and the rule of law, Human Rights Watch said today. On October 9, 2026, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the imposition of sanctions on the ICC.
“The Trump administration has made clear its aim to destroy the ICC to shield US and Israeli officials from facing charges before the court,” said Philippe Bolopion, executive director of Human Rights Watch. “By attacking the court, the US government is threatening justice for victims of abuses from Palestine to Ukraine, Myanmar, and Sudan.”
The ICC is a permanent international court created to try people, including senior officials, accused of war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide, and the crime of aggression. Following the genocides in the mid-1990s in Rwanda and in the former Yugoslavia, the international community created the ICC to prevent those most responsible for serious crimes from evading justice. Nearly two-thirds of UN member countries have joined the court. In addition to its Palestine investigation, the court has opened investigations into alleged crimes in 17 situations, including in Afghanistan, Darfur in Sudan, Bangladesh/Myanmar, Ukraine, and Venezuela.
The US government’s decision to sanction the ICC was announced on the same day that the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize for Navi Pillay, a former ICC judge and renowned international lawyer, in recognition of her central role “in ensuring that war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide are prosecuted.”
In his October 9 announcement, Rubio stated the sanctions were aimed at shielding US nationals from investigation and prosecution at the ICC. The Trump administration has previously objected to the court’s investigation of Israeli nationals for their conduct in Palestine. The ICC has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for serious crimes in Gaza. Palestine became an ICC member in 2015 and gave the court a mandate to address serious crimes committed on its territory or by its nationals since June 13, 2014.
The Trump administration has already sanctioned ICC prosecutors, nine ICC judges, three prominent Palestinian human rights groups, and the United Nations special rapporteur on human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, and called on ICC member countries to leave the court.
US sanctions have serious effects on those targeted, including frozen or closed bank accounts, rejected financial transactions, denied access to digital services, and US entry bans. US sanctions also have a chilling effect on non-US banks and other companies outside of US jurisdiction that could themselves lose access to the US banking system if they do not adhere to the sanctions. This means that the ICC could lose access to companies on which it relies for everyday functions, from banking to information, technology to travel.
Editor’s Note: At a moment when the once vaunted model of responsible journalism is overwhelmingly the play thing of self-serving billionaires and their corporate scribes, alternatives of integrity are desperately needed, and ScheerPost is one of them. Please support our independent journalism by contributing to our online donation platform, Network for Good, or send a check to our new PO Box. We can’t thank you enough, and promise to keep bringing you this kind of vital news.
You can also make a donation to our PayPal or subscribe to our Patreon.