6 June 2025. Independent judges are being punished for simply carrying out their official duties - authorising independent investigations and issuing arrest warrants in the Palestine and Afghanistan situations. They ruled on matters involving alleged international crimes committed by nationals of the United States and Israel. These actions fall squarely within the ICC’s mandate.
Sanctioning ICC judges flips international justice on its head, and sends a chilling message: those who pursue accountability for mass atrocities risk punishment while those allegedly responsible for international crimes are protected. This is devastating not only for ICC staff and civil society supporting the Court, but especially for victims and affected communities in Palestine, Afghanistan, and beyond, who look to the Court for hope. These sanctions crush that hope.
These types of sanctions, enforced through Trump’s Executive Order and the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), were originally designed to disrupt terrorist networks and human rights abusers - not to target international justice institutions. Directing them against ICC officials represents a dangerous misuse of executive power. The sanctions are intended not to protect national security, but to shield powerful allies like Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and send a warning to others: do not cooperate with the Court. And that’s precisely the intention - Trump’s ICC sanctions support impunity, not accountability.
The four women judges being sanctioned are Judge Solomy Balungi Bossa (Uganda), Judge Luz del Carmen Ibáñez Carranza (Peru), Judge Reine Alapini-Gansou (Benin), and Judge Beti Hohler (Slovenia). While these sanctions specifically cite the Palestine and Afghanistan situations, their consequences are far broader. All four judges have worked on proceedings in several other ICC situations, including Belarus/Lithuania, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Libya, Mali, Myanmar/Bangladesh, the Philippines, Sudan, Uganda, and Venezuela.
GIAI welcomes the strong condemnation of the sanctions by the Netherlands, as well as Slovenia’s prompt proposal to immediately activate the EU Blocking Statute to protect EU citizens and international justice institutions from such coercive measures.
GIAI calls on:
– All 125 ICC States Parties to denounce the sanctions publicly and unequivocally, and reaffirm their commitment to the Rome Statute;
– The European Union to honour its unequivocal commitment to protect the ICC’s independence and President Ursula von der Leyen’s recent affirmation that "Europe will always stand for justice and the respect of international law" by issuing a public statement of condemnation, making this a central issue in ongoing negotiations with the United States, and immediately activating and expanding the EU Blocking Statute, as urged by Slovenia, to shield ICC officials and institutions from politically motivated attacks;
– Governments worldwide to coordinate strong legal and diplomatic pushback including reciprocal measures and refusal to enforce politically motivated sanctions;
– The ICC Office of the Prosecutor to investigate any individual for potential “offences against the administration of justice” under Article 70(1)(e) of the Rome Statute, which criminalises retaliation against officials of the Court for the official duties they perform;
– The US Congress to oppose this dangerous distortion of sanctions law and restore support for international justice;
– Civil society organisations, bar associations, and others to speak out urgently defending judicial independence, rejecting the misuse of sanctions to obstruct justice, and exposing their chilling effect on accountability efforts.
When judges are punished for doing their job, justice everywhere is at risk. When judges and justice are attacked at the ICC, the Court of last resort responsible for determining accountability for the world’s worst crimes, it sends a chilling message across the globe. This kind of assault has a ripple effect, making judicial bodies everywhere feel vulnerable. This moment demands solidarity and courage from the international community, requiring it to unequivocally speak out against these attacks on the rule of law. If we allow judges to be sanctioned for applying the law, the very foundations of justice, accountability, and the rights of victims are at risk.
About the Global Initiative Against Impunity (GIAI)
The Global Initiative Against Impunity for international crimes and serious human rights violations: Making Justice Work (GIAI) is a consortium of eight international NGOs and the Coalition for the ICC, co-funded by the European Union, which aims to contribute to the fight against impunity by supporting a comprehensive, integrated, and inclusive approach to justice and accountability for serious human rights violations and international crimes. Driven by this commitment, we recently launched the GIAI Knowledge Management Platform, an inclusive, multilingual digital clearing house for collaboration, learning, and information sharing.