The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Friday condemned the issuance of an executive order by the United States president that seeks to impose sanctions on its officials and " harm its independent and impartial judicial work." The ICC said it stands firmly by its staff and pledges to continue to bring justice and hope to millions of innocent victims of atrocities across the world.
The Court in The Hague said it will do so "in all situations before it" and "in the sole interest of human dignity."
“We call on our 125 States Parties, civil society and all nations of the world to stand united for justice and fundamental human rights,” the ICC statement said.
“As atrocities continue to plague the globe affecting the lives of millions of innocent children, women and men, the Court has become indispensable,” ICC President Judge Tomoko Akane said on Friday.
“It represents the most significant legacy of the immense suffering inflicted on civilians by the world wars, the Holocaust, genocides, violence and persecutions.”
Akane said that when most of the world's nations came together to draft the Rome Statute, they made “the dream of many women and men come true”, and that the ICC handles cases arising from various situations around the world, in “strict adherence to the provisions of the Rome Statute”.
The Rome Statute is one of the most important legal documents in the field of international humanitarian law and international criminal law. It marks a critical step in the evolution of international law, advancing the idea that individuals who commit the most serious crimes should be held accountable at the international level, thereby creating a deterrent to atrocity crimes.
The Rome Statute created a global system for holding individuals accountable for crimes that previously often went unaddressed by national courts, especially in cases where countries were unwilling or unable to prosecute the perpetrators themselves.
The US executive order issued on Thursday includes the blocking of property and assets, as well as the suspension of entry into the United States of ICC officials, employees, and their immediate family members. It is considered to be a serious attack not only on the Court, but also on its States Parties, the majority of the world's nations.
In declaring that the ICC's efforts to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute certain individuals constitute "an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States," the US directive is seen as further fostering impunity around the world.
On Friday, 79 States Parties issued a joined statement in support of the International Criminal Court, in which they reaffirmed their “continued and unwavering support for the independence, impartiality, and integrity of the ICC”.
“Such measures increase the risk of impunity for the most serious crimes and threaten to erode the international rule of law, which is crucial for promoting global order and security,” they said.
US courts can strike down executive orders if they are found to be unconstitutional or exceed the authority of a US president. While executive orders do not require congressional approval, the US Congress can pass legislation that overrides the content of an order. Directives cannot override the laws of Congress.
The move by the new US administration was timed to coincide with a US visit by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and follows the decision by ICC judges to issue arrest warrants for the Prime Minister and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
On November 21, 2024, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the context of the war in Gaza. The Court also issued an arrest warrant for Hamas military chief Mohammed Diab Ibrahim Al-Masri, also known as Deif, for crimes against humanity.
Israel's war in Gaza has been marked by serious war crimes, crimes against humanity and other serious violations of international humanitarian law by Israeli forces. These include collective punishment of the civilian population, use of starvation as a method of warfare, denial of humanitarian aid, indiscriminate killing of civilians, targeted killings of civilians, disproportionate attacks, forced displacement, torture, enforced disappearances and other atrocity crimes.
A growing number of independent legal experts and international organizations - including the world's most prominent human rights group, Amnesty International - have also asserted that Israel's actions in Gaza against Palestinians as a group amount to genocide. However, Netanyahu and Gallant are currently not wanted by the ICC for the crime of genocide, which is within the court's jurisdiction.
Prosecuting thousands of Israeli government officials, military officers and soldiers accused of committing some of the worst crimes known to humankind during the Gaza war is likely to take years.
Israeli courts and the ICC will hardly be able to cope. National courts in other countries operating under the principle of universal jurisdiction and international criminal tribunals may have to shoulder some of the caseload to end impunity in Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem.
Thursday's move by the United States government is not the first attack on the international criminal justice system.
“The announced Executive Order is only the latest in a series of unprecedented and escalatory attacks aiming to undermine the Court’s ability to administer justice in all situation,” Judge Akane said.
“Such threats and coercive measures constitute serious attacks against the Court’s States Parties, the rule of law based international order and millions of victims.”
Akane said the ICC and its officials from every corner of the world carry out its judicial mandate every day to determine whether certain individual acts within its legitimate jurisdiction give rise to responsibility for international crimes.
“We firmly reject any attempt to influence the independence and the impartiality of the Court or to politicize our judicial function. We have and always will comply only with the law, under all circumstances”, the ICC President said.
In a related development, Judge Akane and other senior ICC officials met with European Union leaders in Brussels on Thursday, including European Council President AntĂłnio Costa and EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kalla.
Akane urged the EU to take concrete and swift steps to protect the ICC, stressing that the EU Blocking Statute remains one of the most important tools for the Court to survive any sanctions that may be imposed.
The Blocking Statute can be seen as a legal tool to resist US influence on issues where it conflicts with European or international law. The European Union could use it to protect individuals, companies and interests from complying with US actions that undermine the ICC.
Established in 2002 under the multilateral Rome Statute, the International Criminal Court is an intergovernmental organization and international court based in The Hague, the Netherlands. The ICC, which has 125 state parties, the majority of the world's states, is independent but is supported by the United Nations General Assembly.
Several large countries, such as the United States, Russia, and China, are not parties. However, the Court is a judicial body that serves the interests of the international community by enforcing and promoting universally recognized rules of international law, including the law of armed conflict and human rights law.
The ICC is the only permanent international court with jurisdiction to prosecute individuals for war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and the crime of aggression, and is the primary institution responsible for prosecuting individuals for the most serious violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law.
The Office of the Prosecutor is an independent organ of the Court that conducts preliminary examinations and investigations and is the only person who can bring cases before the Court. The ICC Prosecutor, Karim Khan, is also seeking arrest warrants for other high-profile individuals.
In November 20204, Khan announced that he was seeking an arrest warrant for Myanmar's acting president, General Min Aung Hlaing, for the crimes against humanity of deportation and persecution of the Rohingya people committed in 2017.
In January, the Chief Prosecutor announced that he was seeking arrest warrants for senior Taliban leaders in Afghanistan accused of crimes against humanity, citing widespread persecution of the country's female population and LGBTQI+ population.
Violations of international humanitarian law (IHL) and human rights law (HRL) are closely linked to humanitarian crises because these laws establish the legal norms designed to limit the impact of armed conflict on people, to protect individuals who do not actively participate in hostilities, and to regulate the means and methods of warfare.
When IHL and HRL are violated, it often results in significant human suffering and can trigger or exacerbate humanitarian crises.
IHL requires parties to a conflict to allow and facilitate the delivery of humanitarian assistance to those in need. Violations occur when a party deliberately blocks humanitarian aid or attacks aid workers.
When violations of IHL and human rights law go unpunished or perpetrators enjoy impunity, it can contribute to the prolongation of conflicts and the continuation of such violations. The lack of accountability for such violations can prevent the establishment of peace and justice, thereby prolonging the humanitarian crisis and hindering recovery efforts.
Efforts by the international community to enforce international humanitarian and human rights law and to hold violators accountable are critical to preventing or mitigating humanitarian crises related to war, conflict and human rights violations.
Further information
Website: International Criminal Court
https://www.icc-cpi.int/
Full text: 79 States Parties in support of the ICC, joined statement, released February 7, 2025
https://buildingtrust.si/79-states-parties-in-support-of-the-icc/
Full text: Imposing Sanctions on the International Criminal Court, US government, White House, issued February 6, 2025
https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/02/imposing-sanctions-on-the-international-criminal-court/