ICC Says U.S. Sanctions on Its President Undermine the Rule of Law, Vows to Press On

The International Criminal Court said Tuesday that U.S. sanctions on its president, Judge Tomoko Akane, and senior trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye undermine the rule of law, and that it remains undeterred. The court said that when judicial actors are threatened for applying the law, the international legal order itself is placed at risk. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the two had engaged in efforts to prosecute officials whose government has not consented to ICC jurisdiction. The designations under Executive Order 14203 bar both from the United States and its financial system. The court issued arrest warrants in November 2024 against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the Gaza war.