US Escalates Attack on ICC, Sanctions President and Senior Prosecutor Over Bibi Case

By Staff, Agencies

The United States has imposed sanctions on International Criminal Court [ICC] President Tomoko Akane and senior trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye, marking another escalation in Washington’s campaign against the Hague-based court, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Tuesday.

Rubio said Akane, a Japanese judge, and Seye, a Senegalese national, were sanctioned under an executive order signed by President Donald Trump last year authorizing punitive measures against ICC officials.

“These individuals have directly engaged in efforts by the ICC to investigate, arrest, detain or prosecute” officials whose governments have not “consented to ICC jurisdiction,” Rubio said.

The ICC condemned the sanctions, warning that Washington’s actions threaten the foundations of international law.

“When judicial actors are threatened for applying the law, it is the international legal order itself that is placed at risk,” the court said.

Seye is a senior trial attorney on the prosecution team that sought an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He has also been nominated for election as an ICC judge.

The sanctions freeze any US assets belonging to the two officials and effectively cut them off from the American financial system. The US Treasury issued a general license allowing transactions involving Akane and Seye to be wound down until September 17.

Akane previously warned that US sanctions could “rapidly undermine the court's operations in all situations and cases, and jeopardize its very existence.”

Washington imposed sanctions on several ICC prosecutors and judges last year after the court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former "Israeli" War Minister Yoav Gallant. The US also objected to the ICC’s previous investigation into alleged crimes involving US forces in Afghanistan.

Rubio said last month that Washington would intensify its efforts to weaken the ICC, including through diplomatic pressure aimed at persuading other countries to withdraw from the institution. At least five countries have already done so.

Three ICC judges sued Trump and his administration in June, arguing that the sanctions were unlawful, while advocacy groups have filed separate legal challenges against Washington’s campaign.

The latest measures come after the ICC removed Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan in July after two-thirds of the court’s members voted for his dismissal amid allegations of “sexual misconduct,” which Khan denied.

ICC members said the proceedings against Khan “are not related to the conduct of investigations or proceedings before the court and are without prejudice to the independence of the International Criminal Court.”

"Israeli" media have separately reported that "Israeli" Foreign Minister Gideon Saar led a diplomatic campaign seeking Khan’s removal. "Israeli" journalist Guy Azriel, citing an unnamed "Israeli" official, reported: “According to the official, Saar oversaw a dedicated task force and employed intensive diplomatic efforts aimed at securing Khan's removal.”

Following Khan’s removal, Saar described the arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant as “politicized and outrageous.”