The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, has strongly condemned the United States Government’s decision to impose sanctions on four judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC).
In a statement issued on Friday, Türk described the sanctions as “deeply corrosive of good governance and the due administration of justice.”
The measures were announced on Thursday by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and are aimed at ICC judges presiding over cases involving alleged war crimes.
These cases include a 2020 investigation into the conduct of US and Afghan forces in Afghanistan, as well as the 2024 arrest warrants issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant.
“I am profoundly disturbed by the decision of the United States Government to sanction judges of the International Criminal Court,” said Türk.
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He highlighted that the f r affected judges are women from Benin, Peru, Slovenia, and Uganda, who have been involved in rulings related to Afghanistan and Palestine.
Türk called for an immediate review and reversal of the sanctions, stressing that targeting judges for performing their judicial duties undermines the rule of law and the principles the US has traditionally championed.
His remarks follow a strong statement from the ICC on Thursday, which condemned the sanctions as an attack on judicial independence.
The ICC functions under the authority of 125 States Parties worldwide, underscoring its international mandate.
On Friday, the court’s legislative body, the Assembly of States Parties, echoed Türk’s concerns, firmly rejecting the US sanctions.
They warned that such actions could harm global efforts to ensure accountability, weaken the pursuit of justice, and erode the rules-based international order.
