U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused the court of threatening American sovereignty, stating that the administration was acting to protect its citizens from a “sham” institution and would never permit Americans to be “transported beyond seas to be tried for pretend offenses.”
Tuesday’s sanctions are part of a campaign launched by Washington last month to undermine the ICC. The U.S. has already sanctioned at least 11 ICC officials and has encouraged the court’s 125 member states to withdraw from the organization.
The Hague-based ICC, established in 2002, prosecutes genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. Its pursuit of charges against senior Israeli politicians, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for whom it has issued an arrest warrant, has been a particular sore point for the U.S.
The court issued a statement on Tuesday in response to Washington, warning that actions punishing judges, prosecutors, and staff for conducting their duties “undermine the rule of law” and jeopardize the international legal order.
Netanyahu, wanted by the court for allegedly using starvation as a method of warfare and intentionally targeting the civilian population of Gaza, praised Washington’s move, calling the ICC a “kangaroo court” and commending Rubio for making it clear that its officials would “face consequences.”













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