US announces new sanctions on top ICC figures

US announces new sanctions on top ICC figures 34 minutes ago Tom BatemanState department correspondent Getty Images Judge Tomoko Akane began her three-year term as ICC president in 2024. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has announced sanctions against the president and a senior lawyer of the International Criminal Court (ICC). The move is the Trump administration's latest escalation in its campaign to "dismantle" the court which is empowered by more than 120 member countries to investigate war crimes. Rubio said the US was sanctioning ICC President Tomoko Akane of Japan and ICC Senior Trial Lawyer Abdoulaye Seye of Senegal for engaging in the ICC's efforts to "prosecute officials whose government has not consented to ICC jurisdiction". The ICC said it stands behinds its staff and believe that measures such as those announced by Rubio "undermine the rule of law." Rubio accused the court of being "a corrupt and fatally politicized supranational court that has maliciously abused its authority and exceeded its mandate. We will not tolerate its assault on state sovereignty." Neither President Trump nor the White House has so far commented. The Trump administration has already announced sanctions on at least 11 ICC officials, including nine judges and the chief prosecutor. The sanctions include asset freezes, travel bans, and restrictions on services from U.S. companies. Those sanctions were issued in retaliation for ICC investigat…