ICC condemns sanctions as undermining judicial independence

6/6/2025 5:57

President

Donald Trump's administration on Thursday imposed sanctions on

four judges at the International Criminal Court, an

unprecedented retaliation over the war tribunal's cases

regarding alleged war crimes by U.S. troops in Afghanistan and

over the court's issuance of an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime

Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.



Washington designated Solomy Balungi Bossa of Uganda, Luz

del Carmen Ibanez Carranza of Peru, Reine Adelaide Sophie

Alapini Gansou of Benin, and Beti Hohler of Slovenia, according

to a statement from U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.



"As ICC judges, these four individuals have actively engaged

in the ICC’s illegitimate and baseless actions targeting America

or our close ally, Israel. The ICC is politicized and falsely

claims unfettered discretion to investigate, charge, and

prosecute nationals of the United States and our allies," Rubio

said.



The ICC slammed the move, saying it was an attempt to

undermine the independence of an international judicial

institution that provides hope and justice to millions of

victims of "unimaginable atrocities."



Both judges Bossa and Carranza have been on the ICC bench

since 2018. In 2020 they were involved in an appeals chamber

decision that allowed the ICC prosecutor to open a formal

investigation into alleged war crimes by American troops in

Afghanistan.



ICC judges also issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu, former

Israeli defense chief Yoav Gallant and Hamas leader Ibrahim

Al-Masri last November for alleged war crimes and crimes against

humanity during the Gaza conflict. Alapini Gansou and Hohler

ruled to authorize the arrest warrant against Netanyahu and

Gallant, Rubio said.



The move deepens the administration's animosity toward the

court. During the first Trump administration in 2020, Washington

imposed sanctions on then-prosecutor Fatou Bensouda and one of

her top aides over the court's work on Afghanistan.



Sanctions severely hamper individuals' abilities to carry

out even routine financial transactions as any banks with ties

to the United States, or that conduct transactions in dollars,

are expected to have to comply with the restrictions.



But the Treasury Department also issued general licenses,

including one allowing the wind-down of transactions involving

those targeted on Thursday until July 8, so long as any payment

to them is made to a blocked, interest-bearing account located

in the U.S.