The Trump administration escalated its fight against the International Criminal Court by imposing sanctions on 4 more court docket officials concerned in work associated to alleged Israeli and US conflict crimes.
In an announcement Wednesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated the State Department was designating Kimberly Prost of Canada, Nicolas Guillou of France, Nazhat Shameem Khan of Fiji and Mame Mandiaye Niang of Senegal for his or her work within the ICC “to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute nationals of the United States or Israel, without the consent of either nation.”
The sanctions have been imposed below an government order issued by President Donald Trump in February that authorizes punitive measures like sanctions and potential entrance bans on ICC personnel due to its “illegitimate and baseless actions targeting America and our close ally Israel.” The government order was already used to sanction ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan and 4 ICC judges.
According to a State Department truth sheet, Prost, an ICC choose “is being designated for ruling to authorize the ICC’s investigation into U.S. personnel in Afghanistan.”
Guillou, one other choose, “is being designated for ruling to authorize the ICC’s issuance of arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant,” the actual fact sheet stated.
“Deputy Prosecutors Shameem Khan and Niang are being designated for continuing to support illegitimate ICC actions against Israel, including upholding the ICC’s arrest warrants targeting Prime Minister Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Gallant since they assumed leadership for the ICC’s Office of the Prosecutor,” it stated.
The ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Gallant in November 2024 for alleged conflict crimes and crimes in opposition to humanity.
Trump additionally signed an government order authorizing sanctions and visa restrictions for members of the court docket throughout his first time period in 2020, months after the ICC approved a probe into alleged conflict crimes dedicated in Afghanistan by US and Afghan forces in addition to alleged conflict crimes and crimes in opposition to humanity dedicated by the Taliban.