Fri Feb 07 23:06:41 UTC 2025: ## Trump Slams ICC with Sanctions, Sparking International Condemnation

**The Hague/Washington D.C.** – The International Criminal Court (ICC) is facing renewed US sanctions, imposed by President Donald Trump in response to ongoing investigations targeting the United States and Israel. The sanctions, which include asset freezes and travel bans on ICC officials, employees, and their families, have drawn swift and widespread condemnation from the United Nations, the European Union, and the ICC itself.

Trump’s executive order, signed Thursday, cites the ICC’s issuance of an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as an abuse of power. The ICC, however, maintains its investigations are impartial and necessary to bring justice to victims of atrocities worldwide. The court stated that the sanctions aim to hinder its independent judicial work.

The UN and EU have urged Trump to reverse the decision, emphasizing the court’s crucial role in upholding international criminal justice and accountability. Concerns have been raised that the sanctions could severely hamper the ICC’s operations, potentially discouraging victims from coming forward and impacting ongoing investigations, including those relating to Ukraine.

While the names of the sanctioned individuals haven’t been released, the move echoes similar actions taken by the Trump administration in 2020 against then-ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda. Those sanctions, later lifted by President Biden, targeted the ICC’s investigation into alleged war crimes by US service members in Afghanistan.

The current sanctions stem from ICC investigations into alleged war crimes committed by both US personnel in Afghanistan and Israeli forces in Gaza. Neither the US nor Israel are members of the ICC. Israel’s foreign minister, Gideon Saar, however, praised Trump’s action, characterizing the ICC’s investigations as illegitimate.

The ICC maintains that it has found reasonable grounds to believe Netanyahu and former Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant bear criminal responsibility for war crimes, including starvation as a method of warfare during the Gaza conflict. Netanyahu has accused the court of anti-Semitism. The ICC also issued a warrant for Hamas’s military chief, Mohammed Deif.

The international community’s reaction highlights the significant tension between the US and the ICC, underscoring the ongoing debate surrounding the court’s jurisdiction and the balance between national sovereignty and international justice.

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