US sanctions ICC chief prosecutor

The US has sanctioned International Criminal Court (ICC) chief prosecutor Karim Khan over the court’s investigations into US personnel and alleged Israeli war crimes in Gaza, Al-Monitor via AFP reported on February 13th.

The US Treasury Department cited Donald Trump’s February 6th executive order, which urged for Khan to be sanctioned. The order accused the ICC of engaging in “illegitimate and baseless actions” targeting the US and Israel, which are not ICC members.

Khan, a British national, was responsible for the request that led the ICC to give an arrest warrant late last year for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant. The ICC determined there were “reasonable grounds” to believe the two officials bore “criminal responsibility” for using starvation as a method of warfare in Gaza, as well as crimes against humanity, including murder and persecution.

The ICC is also investigating war crimes and crimes against humanity purportedly committed during the US invasion and occupation of Afghanistan between 2001 and 2021.

Trump’s accused the court of abusing its authority and imposing “baseless arrest warrants” against Netanyahu and Gallant. Trump ordered asset freezes and travel bans on ICC officials, staff and their families.

The ICC condemned the sanctions for trying to “harm its independent and impartial judicial work.”

This is not the first time the US has targeted ICC officials. During Trump’s first term in office, his administration imposed sanctions and a visa ban on then-ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda and other senior officials. Those measures were lifted by President Joe Biden in 2021.

In January, US Senate democrats blocked the advancement of legislation that intended to impose sanctions on people involved with the ICC for prosecuting Israeli leaders over war crimes,  The New Arab via Reuters reported. Senate Minority Leader, Chuck Schumer of New York, criticised the bill for being “poorly drafted and deeply troublesome.” However, he noted that minor revisions by the Republicans could have garnered Democratic support.

Al-Monitor via AFP, The New Arab via Reuters