Trump Imposes Sanctions on International Criminal Court

The Netherlands, the host nation of the court based in The Hague, said it regretted the sanctions

- Agencies

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump has authorized economic and travel sanctions targeting people who work on International Criminal Court investigations of US citizens or US allies such as Israel, drawing condemnation - but also some praise - abroad.

The ICC is a permanent court that can prosecute individuals for war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and the crime of aggression against the territory of member states or by their nationals.

Trump's move, on Thursday, coincided with a visit to Washington by Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is wanted by the ICC over the war in Gaza. The ICC condemned the sanctions.

"The court stands firmly by its personnel and pledges to continue providing justice and hope to millions of innocent victims of atrocities across the world, in all situations before it," it said on Friday.

The ICC also called on its 125 member states to support its staff. "We call on our 125 States Parties, civil society and all nations of the world to stand united for justice and fundamental human rights," it said.

Many in Europe did so. "Sanctioning the ICC threatens the Court's independence and undermines the international criminal justice system as a whole," Antonio Costa, the president of the European Council of EU leaders, wrote on social media platform Bluesky.

The Netherlands, the host nation of the court based in The Hague, also said it regretted the sanctions, as did European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen.

"The court's work is essential in the fight against impunity," Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp said in a post on X.

But Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a staunch ally of Trump, said the sanctions showed it might be time to leave the ICC.