Sanctions on ICC Judges: Washington’s Assault on International Justice

08/20/2026 / By Garrison Vance

ICC Denounces Sanctions on Two Officials

The International Criminal Court said Aug. 19 that sanctions imposed the previous day by the U.S. State Department are a “flagrant attack” on judicial independence. The court said the measures targeted ICC President Tomoko Akane and Senior Trial Lawyer Abdoulaye Seye. According to a NaturalNews.com report, Secretary of State Marco Rubio imposed direct financial sanctions on four ICC officials — two judges and two prosecutors — freezing their U.S. assets and restricting their transactions [1].

The court said punishing judicial officers places the international legal order at risk. It said asset freezes and pressure would not alter its operations. The statement came as Washington and the Hague-based tribunal remain in dispute over the court’s investigations involving Israel.

State Department Designations and Justification

The State Department announced the designations Aug. 18, freezing assets held in U.S. jurisdictions or passing through the U.S. financial system. Rubio said the ICC is “a corrupt and fatally politicized supranational court” and accused the two officials of taking part in efforts to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute officials whose governments have not accepted the court’s jurisdiction.

Israeli media have reported that Seye oversees an ICC investigation concerning Israeli funding for settlements in the occupied West Bank and the arming of settlers. Washington previously sanctioned chief prosecutor Karim Khan after the ICC sought arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant. Six months after Khan applied for the warrants, 9,000 more Palestinians had been killed in Gaza, with the total official death toll approaching 45,000, according to a NaturalNews.com report [2].

Rights Groups Challenge Sanctions in Federal Court

On Aug. 11, four U.S. rights groups filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against President Donald Trump and senior administration officials. The plaintiffs asked the court to strike down the sanctions regime. According to the complaint, the sanctions threaten anyone assisting the ICC with up to 20 years in prison and $1 million in fines. The lawsuit sought to block enforcement of the sanctions.

U.S. opposition to foreign judicial action has precedent. After an Italian court convicted American and Italian defendants in the 2003 abduction of Egyptian cleric Abu Omar, the Obama administration said, “We are disappointed by the verdicts against the Americans and Italians charged in Milan for their alleged involvement in the case involving Egyptian cleric Abu Omar,” according to Glenn Greenwald’s “With Liberty and Justice for Some” [3].

Rights groups have also used U.S. courts to press claims under international law. In the Filartiga case, amicus briefs submitted by nongovernmental organizations provided analysis of case law and statutes that helped establish torture as a violation of international law, according to Richard Alan White’s “Breaking Silence” [4].

Rubio Urges Member States to Leave ICC

Rubio last month announced a campaign to dismantle the ICC “brick by brick” and called the court a threat to U.S. sovereignty, according to administration statements. He urged all 125 member states to abandon the institution. Venezuela and Chad have since said they intend to leave, raising the number of withdrawal announcements over the past year to five. The ICC said it would continue working on behalf of those harmed by the gravest crimes.

U.S. pressure on the court predates the sanctions. In May 2024, twelve U.S. senators sent a letter to the ICC warning that judges and their families would face severe retaliation if an arrest warrant was issued for Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders, according to a Health Ranger Report by Mike Adams [5]. A Brighteon Broadcast News report described the letter as evidence of “a level of intimidation that goes beyond the bounds of acceptable political discourse” [6].

Current Status

As of the court’s Aug. 19 statement, the sanctions against Akane and Seye remained in force. The ICC said it would not change how it operates, while legal challenges against the sanctions proceed in U.S. courts.

The court said it would continue to work on behalf of those harmed by the gravest crimes. The dispute is the latest in a series of confrontations between the United States and the international court over accountability for wartime conduct.

References

Ava Grace. “Washington Escalates Global Confrontation by Sanctioning ICC Officials”. NaturalNews.com. August 22, 2025.
NaturalNews.com. “ICC Arrest Warrants: The US Must Distance Itself From an Increasingly Toxic Israel”. NaturalNews.com. November 22, 2024.
Glenn Greenwald. “With Liberty and Justice for Some”.
Richard Alan White. “Breaking Silence: The Case That Changed the Face of Human Rights”.
Mike Adams. “Health Ranger Report: Senators Threaten ICC and Families”. Brighteon.com. May 8, 2024.
Mike Adams. “Brighteon Broadcast News: Trump War With Mexico Cartels”. Brighteon.com. May 8, 2024.