OMM Redaksiyası
US District Judge Jesse Furman has blocked the Trump administration from penalizing two human rights organizations for communicating with the International Criminal Court (ICC), finding that the measures unconstitutionally restrict free speech.
Furman granted a preliminary injunction, ruling that the federal prohibition on providing services to sanctioned ICC personnel regulates speech based on its content and does not pass strict scrutiny.
The order prevents federal agencies from imposing civil fines of up to $377,700 or criminal penalties of up to 20 years in prison under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act against Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN) and the Taxpayer Alliance Against Genocide (TAAG).
DAWN had regularly submitted evidence of alleged war crimes under Article 15 of the Rome Statute. TAAG was established to prepare similar submissions but had not filed them, citing concerns about prosecution. The groups said they would immediately resume submitting evidence to the court, renew formal coordination with UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese and re-engage with Palestinian rights organizations Al-Haq, Al Mezan and the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights.
The lawsuit challenged Executive Order 14203, issued in February 2025, which instructed federal agencies to impose consequences on entities connected to ICC investigations targeting the United States or its allies, including Israel, where they had not consented to the court’s jurisdiction. The order targeted former ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan, six judges and UN personnel.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced last Friday that Washington had imposed sanctions on the court, warning that the United States would dismantle the tribunal if its member states did not rein in its authority.
US pressure intensified after the ICC issued arrest warrants in November 2024 for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes in the Gaza Strip. The court has 125 member states; neither the United States nor Israel is a party to it.
