US escalates pressure on ICC with unprecedented sanctions targeting the court itself

The United States has announced sanctions targeting the International Criminal Court (ICC) itself, marking an escalation in President Donald Trump's administration's campaign against the tribunal, which has previously targeted its judges, prosecutors and supporters.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the measures on Friday, saying Washington would prohibit transactions with the court to restrict its resources and operations.

“We will ban transactions with this rogue court, cutting off their resources and crippling their ability to operate against us because our message is clear: the United States and the American people are not subject to the jurisdiction of this fake ICC,” Rubio said in a video posted on social media.

“Either the ICC will end its threats, or we will end the ICC,” he added.

The administration has cited two key reasons for its actions: the ICC's investigation into alleged abuses in Afghanistan, which could implicate US military and intelligence personnel, and its arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes in Gaza.

The latest measures follow earlier US sanctions against ICC judges and prosecutors, a United Nations special rapporteur focused on the occupied Palestinian territories, and Palestinian rights groups that have provided evidence to the court.

Several rights groups have challenged the sanctions in US federal courts, arguing that restrictions on interactions between US citizens and the ICC infringe on their constitutional freedoms.