OMM Redaksiyası
The United States imposed sanctions on the International Criminal Court on Friday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced, threatening to dismantle the court unless it ended what he described as threats against Americans.
“President Trump will never allow the International Criminal Court to prosecute Americans. That is why, today, the United States is sanctioning the International Criminal Court,” Rubio said in a statement.
Rubio said Washington had delayed the move in the hope that the ICC would change course or be restrained by its member states, but that neither had taken meaningful steps to address US concerns.
“Either the ICC will end its threats, or we will end the ICC,” Rubio said, urging US allies that belong to the court to rein it in. “If they do not, the United States will continue its campaign to dismantle the ICC, brick by brick, until Americans are threatened no longer,” he added.
The ICC strongly rejected the sanctions, calling them an assault on the rule of law, and urged its member states to ensure the court could continue operating.
The announcement came hours after former ICC judge Navi Pillay won the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize for her work in international criminal justice. The South African jurist served on the court’s Appeals Chamber from 2003 to 2008.
The sanctions follow increased US pressure on the court after it issued arrest warrants in November 2024 for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes in Gaza. Washington had previously sanctioned ICC judges and prosecutors, including court President Tomoko Akane in August.
At a Cabinet meeting at Camp David on July 31, US President Donald Trump said Rubio’s campaign against the court was not intended to protect him. “He’s trying to defend Bibi and various other people,” Trump said, referring to Netanyahu.
The ICC has 125 member states. Neither the United States nor Israel is a party to the court.
