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US imposes new sanctions on ICC president, senior lawyer in latest escalation
The Trump administration has imposed sanctions on ICC President Tomoko Akane and senior trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye, barring them from the US and its financial system. The ICC called the move a 'flagrant attack' on its independence, while Japan expressed regret and other nations voiced concern.
The Trump administration on Tuesday announced sanctions against two senior officials of the International Criminal Court (ICC): President Tomoko Akane, a Japanese national, and senior trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye from Senegal. The measures, announced by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, bar the two from entering the United States and from conducting transactions in the U.S. financial system, and they also freeze any U.S. assets they may hold.
Rubio said the two individuals "directly engaged in efforts by the ICC to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute officials whose government has not consented to ICC jurisdiction." On X, he described the move as part of Washington's "unwavering mission to protect Americans from this sham of a court." The State Department declared that "The Trump Administration has been clear: The International Criminal Court is a corrupt and fatally politicized supranational court that has maliciously abused its authority and exceeded its mandate."
The sanctions were imposed under an executive order signed by President Trump, with The Hindu reporting that they are pursuant to Executive Order 14203 issued on February 6, 2025. That order cited the ICC's investigations against and arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant.
This is not the first time Washington has targeted the ICC. According to Africa News, the Trump administration had previously sanctioned nine of the court's 18 judges, both deputy prosecutors, the former chief prosecutor, and one other prosecution office staffer. Last year, the U.S. imposed sanctions on several ICC officials after the court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and then-Defence Minister Yoav Gallant over the war in Gaza. The Biden administration had rejected that move, expressing concerns over "troubling process errors," The Hindu reported.
Rubio has also said the U.S. will sanction organisations that work with the ICC, pressure the court's 125 member states to withdraw, and ban ICC staff from travelling to the U.S.
ICC's response and legal standing
The ICC called the sanctions "a flagrant attack against the independence of an impartial judicial institution," as quoted by The Hindu, while Africa News reported the ICC's statement that when "judicial actors are threatened for applying the law, it is the international legal order itself that is placed at risk." The court said measures targeting judges, prosecutors and staff undermine the rule of law, and it remains "undeterred," standing behind all its staff, according to Deutsche Welle.
In a direct quote carried by Africa News, ICC President Akane said: "We will never give up, and the court took ten measures to prepare itself against the sanctions and limit as much as possible the effect of sanctions on its activities."
The Hague-based court, established in 2002, prosecutes war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity. It operates on the basis of the Rome Statute, adopted in 1998 and in force since 2002, with 137 signatories and 125 member states. The U.S. and Israel are signatories but have never ratified the treaty, so they are not members. India, China, and Russia also have not joined.
The court's jurisdiction extends to crimes committed on the territory of member states or by their nationals, and it may step in when national courts are unable or unwilling to pursue prosecutions. Rubio said the court has made "multiple attempts" to assert authority over U.S. nationals and nationals of countries outside its jurisdiction, setting a dangerous precedent.
International reaction
The sanctions have drawn criticism from several quarters. A spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was "seriously concerned," with the ICC being described as "key pillar" of international criminal justice, as reported by The Hindu. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk called the sanctions unacceptable The Hindu reported, demanding they be lifted. European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said the court "must be able to act independently and without external pressure," while Germany's Foreign Ministry said the court's independence was "of central importance." Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen invited Akane for talks to discuss continued support.
Japan, the ICC's host country in terms of its closest ally, faces a diplomatic dilemma. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi described the sanctions as "deeply regrettable" and said Japan would "continue to communicate closely with the United States and other countries involved". The Foreign Ministry called the measures "very unfortunate," stressing Japan's consistent support for the ICC's mission. Japan has endorsed the ICC as a pillar of the rules-based order, but its response has been less forceful than that of the EU.
Escalating campaign
Rubio argued that the ICC poses a threat to US personnel carrying out Trump's hardline immigration policies or "drug interdiction" strikes, as reported by Deutsche Welle, but the separate documents also indicate that Washington's actions are sparked by the court's investigations against Israel, a U.S. ally. The 2024 warrant against Netanyahu over the Gaza war has been a capitulation point.
The Trump administration has been escalating its pressure campaign over the past year, last month announcing plans to step up efforts to weaken the ICC, including a diplomatic push for other countries to withdraw. Venezuela and Chad have already pulled out this year, adding to withdrawals by Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, bringing the total to five in the last year.
In a related development, three ICC judges sued the Trump administration in June, and four human rights groups followed last week, both in response to earlier sanctions, as reported by Deutsche Welle. The sanctions against Akane and Seye are the latest in the series and were met with defiance and with support from many countries.
Netanyahu, meanwhile, welcomed the sanctions and called the ICC a "kangaroo court," The Hindu reported.
Tomoko Akane, the Japanese judge who has served at the ICC since 2018 and was elected president in 2024, has faced threats before. After Russia issued its own arrest warrants against senior ICC officials, she said: "Even if one judge were to die, we are easily replaceable, so there is really no value in targeting us."
How each outlet told it
Africa News
Framing: Focuses on the ICC's condemnation of the sanctions, using 'slams' to emphasize confrontation — Sympathetic to the ICC, emphasizing its resilience and determination; tone is supportive of the court's mission
Facts Included:
The ICC on Wednesday slammed the latest US sanctions targeting senior ICC staff, including its president
The ICC described the move as a 'flagrant attack' on the global tribunal's independence
ICC president Tomoko Akane said, 'We will never give up, and the court took measures to prepare itself against the sanctions and limit as much as possible the effect of sanctions on its activities'
The US State Department on Tuesday said it had hit Akane, a Japanese national, and senior trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye, who is from Senegal
The measures bar them from entering the US and from conducting transactions in the US financial system
US President Donald Trump's administration has already slapped sanctions on 9 of the ICC's 18 judges, both its deputy prosecutors, its former chief prosecutor, and one other prosecution office staffer
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he will pressure the court’s 125 member states to withdraw from the institution, sanction organisations that work with it, and ban staff from traveling to the US
Based in The Hague, the court was set up in 2002 by the international community to prosecute war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity
In a statement, the court said that when 'judicial actors are threatened for applying the law, it is the international legal order itself that is placed at risk'
Washington, which is not a party to the international treaty that established the ICC, accuses it of being 'politicised' and of overstepping its mandate
The sanctions are widely seen as a response to ICC investigations targeting Israel, a US ally. In 2024, the court issued an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the war in Gaza
Framing: Emphasizes the sanctions as 'latest escalation' in Trump administration's attacks on the ICC, framing it as part of a broader conflict — Measured but critical, using quotes from officials but noting the ICC's rejection; tone is factual with a slight emphasis on the adversarial relationship
Facts Included:
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced sanctions on ICC President Tomoko Akane and senior trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye
The sanctions were imposed under an executive order signed by President Donald Trump
Rubio said the individuals 'directly engaged in efforts by the ICC to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute officials whose government has not consented to ICC jurisdiction'
Rubio wrote on X that the move was part of Washington's 'unwavering mission to protect Americans from this sham of a court'
The ICC asserts jurisdiction only if member states are unable or unwilling to prosecute atrocities themselves
The Court's statute also gives it power to prosecute nationals of non-member states who commit atrocities on the territory of a member state
Rubio argues the ICC poses a threat to US personnel carrying out Trump's hardline immigration policies or 'drug interdiction' strikes
State Department statement: 'The Trump Administration has been clear: The International Criminal Court is a corrupt and fatally politicized supranational court'
Last year, the US imposed sanctions on several ICC officials after the Court issued arrest warrants for Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Galant
Last month, Rubio said the Trump administration would step up efforts to undermine the ICC, including a diplomatic campaign to persuade other countries to quit the Court
Chad and Venezuela have already withdrawn from the ICC
Trump has said the US campaign is aimed at defending ally Netanyahu and others from prosecution, not himself
Three ICC judges sued the Trump administration in June, calling sanctions illegal; four human rights groups followed suit last week
Tuesday's sanctions bar Akane and Seye from entering the US and from making transactions within the US financial system
The ICC on Tuesday said it remains 'undeterred' and stands behind all its staff
ICC statement: 'measures targeting judges, prosecutors and staff who work towards the fulfillment of the mandate that was conferred to the ICC by states undermine the rule of law'
ICC statement: 'When judicial actors are threatened for applying the law, it is the international legal order itself that is placed at risk'
Framing: Frames the story as a dilemma for Japan, calling it a 'nightmare scenario' and focusing on Japan's diplomatic struggle — Sympathetic to Japan's position, using language like 'uncomfortable bind' and 'nightmare scenario'; tone is analytical and concerned
Facts Included:
Japan has spent years casting the ICC as a pillar of the rules-based order
This week, its closest ally sanctioned the Japanese judge who leads it
The move has left Tokyo in an uncomfortable bind: defend Tomoko Akane and risk antagonising US leader Donald Trump, or temper its criticism
Washington’s sanctions, announced on Tuesday, drew condemnation from the European Union, several European governments and human rights groups
A spokesman for UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said he was 'seriously concerned'
The Japanese government was more circumspect
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Wednesday described the sanctions as 'deeply regrettable' and vowed to 'continue to communicate closely with the United States and other countries involved'
A Foreign Ministry statement said, 'Japan has consistently supported the ICC, which is a permanent international criminal court, in its efforts to prosecute and punish the most serious crimes of concern to the international community and to uphold the rule of law. From this standpoint, the announced measures are very unfortunate.'
Japan 'will remain committed to strengthening the rule of law in the international community'
Framing: Headline emphasizes 'Explained' format and frames sanctions as part of U.S. moving away from international organisations; it sets the context as a broader trend — Explanatory and measured, aiming to inform rather than alarm; tone is analytical
Facts Included:
The Donald Trump administration on Tuesday (August 18, 2026) announced sanctions on two senior officials of the ICC, including President Tomoko Akane of Japan and senior trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye of Senegal
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the two individuals 'directly engaged in efforts by the ICC to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute officials whose government has not consented to ICC jurisdiction'
Rubio did not mention any specific person or body targeted by the international tribunal
The sanctions are pursuant to the U.S.’s Executive Order 14203 issued on February 6, 2025
Executive Order cited ICC’s investigations against and arrest warrants on Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant
The ICC called the sanctions a 'flagrant attack against the independence of an impartial judicial institution'
ICC is an independent intergovernmental organisation headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands, based on Rome Statute adopted July 1, 1998, came into force July 1, 2002
The Statute has 137 signatories including the U.S. and Israel, and 125 members; the two allies are not members despite being signatories since they have not ratified
Several other major countries, including India, China, and Russia, are also not part of the ICC
The court has jurisdiction to try people from member states and for crimes committed within the territory of member states
The court acts only if the state concerned 'does not, cannot, or is unwilling' to prosecute individuals
For cases referred by UN Security Council, the court gets flexible jurisdiction
Rubio said the court has made multiple attempts to assert authority over U.S. nationals and citizens of countries outside the court’s jurisdiction, setting a dangerous precedent
After court issued arrest warrant against Netanyahu in November 2024, U.S. said action threatens to infringe upon its sovereignty and undermine national security and foreign policy
The U.S. has said the court was overstepping its jurisdiction
The Joe Biden administration rejected the move and expressed concerns over 'troubling process errors'
With latest action, U.S. has sanctioned nine of the court’s 18 judges, both deputy prosecutors and a former chief prosecutor
Rubio said U.S. will sanction organisations that work with ICC and pressure member states to withdraw
Venezuela and Chad announced last month their decision to pull out from the court; this takes number of withdrawals in last year to five, along with Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger
Sanctions restrict travel to U.S., prevent access to U.S. financial system, freeze U.S. assets
Associated Press quoting Canadian judge Kimberly Prost saying she lost access to credit cards and Amazon’s Alexa stopped responding
Netanyahu lauded the sanctions and slammed the ICC as a 'kangaroo court'
Japan objected to the 'very unfortunate' sanctions, saying it has 'consistently supported the ICC... to uphold the rule of law'
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed serious concerns, with spokesperson saying ICC is a 'key pillar of international criminal justice'
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk called sanctions unacceptable and demanded they be lifted
European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said the court 'must be able to act independently and without external pressure'
Germany’s Foreign Ministry said independence of ICC was 'of central importance'
Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen invited Akane for talks 'to discuss our continued support'
Akane has been a judge at the ICC since 2018 and its President since 2024
Moscow retaliated after arrest warrant against Putin by issuing its own warrants against senior court officials including Akane
Akane had said 'Even if one judge were to die, we are easily replaceable, so there is really no value in targeting us'
Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status counts the distinct outlets we found asserting it — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.
Claim
Confidence
Status
ClaimUS Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on Tuesday that the Trump administration imposed sanctions on ICC President Tomoko Akane and senior trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye.
ClaimRubio said the sanctioned individuals 'directly engaged in efforts by the ICC to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute officials whose government has not consented to ICC jurisdiction.'
ClaimThe State Department said: 'The Trump Administration has been clear: The International Criminal Court is a corrupt and fatally politicized supranational court that has maliciously abused its authority and exceeded its mandate.'
ClaimLast year, the US imposed sanctions on several ICC officials after the Court issued arrest warrants for Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Galant over the war in Gaza.
ClaimExecutive Order 14203 cited the ICC's investigations against and arrest warrants on Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant.
ClaimThe Rome Statute has 137 signatories including the U.S. and Israel, and 125 member states; the U.S. and Israel are not members because they have not ratified it.
ClaimRubio said the court has made multiple attempts to assert authority over U.S. nationals and citizens of countries outside the court's jurisdiction, setting a dangerous precedent.
ClaimLast month, Rubio said the Trump administration would step up efforts to undermine the ICC, including a diplomatic campaign to persuade other countries to quit the Court.
ClaimVenezuela and Chad announced last month their decision to pull out from the court, taking the number of withdrawals in the last year to five, along with Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger.
ClaimICC president Tomoko Akane said: 'We will never give up, and the court took measures to prepare itself against the sanctions and limit as much as possible the effect of sanctions on its activities.'
ClaimAssociated Press quoted Canadian judge Kimberly Prost, who was sanctioned last year, saying she lost access to her credit cards and Amazon's Alexa stopped responding.
ClaimJapanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Wednesday described the sanctions as 'deeply regrettable' and vowed to continue to communicate closely with the United States and other countries involved.
ClaimUN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed serious concerns over the U.S. sanctions, with a spokesperson saying the ICC is a 'key pillar of international criminal justice.'
ClaimAfter the ICC issued an arrest warrant against Russian President Vladimir Putin, Moscow issued its own warrants against senior court officials including Akane.
4 outlets · 4 articles consulted: Africa News, Deutsche Welle, South China Morning Post, The Hindu — World53 claims extractedVersion 2Written 2026-08-21