United States Imposes Sanctions on President of the International Criminal Court and Prominent Lawyer

The Trump administration imposed sanctions on two senior officials of the International Criminal Court (ICC), including its president, on Tuesday, as Washington intensifies its campaign against the Hague-based court.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement that the sanctions target ICC President Tomoko Akane of Japan and Abdoulaye Diop, the ICC’s senior prosecutor from Senegal, accusing them of “directly engaging in the Court’s efforts to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute officials in cases over which their governments have not consented to the ICC’s jurisdiction.”

He added, “The ICC has repeatedly attempted to assert its authority over citizens of the United States and other countries that have not accepted its jurisdiction or ratified the Rome Statute. This sets a dangerous precedent for all nations.”