Iran Press/ Europe: An executive order by US President Donald Trump announced Thursday authorizes sanctions against ICC staff investigating American troops and intelligence officials and those of allied nations, including Israel, for possible war crimes in Afghanistan and elsewhere.
Trump’s order would block the financial assets of court employees and bar them and their immediate relatives from entering the United States.
The court, which has 123 member states, said in a statement released early Friday that it stands firmly by its staff and officials and remains unwavering in its commitment to discharging, independently and impartially, the mandate laid down in its founding treaty, the Rome Statute.
O-Gon Kwon, president of the court’s management and oversight mechanism, the Assembly of States Parties, also criticized the U.S. measures.
“They undermine our common endeavor to fight impunity and to ensure accountability for mass atrocities,” he said in a statement adding: “I deeply regret measures targeting Court officials, staff, and their families.”
The Hague-based court was created in 2002 to prosecute war crimes and crimes of humanity and genocide in places where perpetrators might not otherwise face justice. The U.S. has never been an ICC member.
The US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Thursday said that the US would punish the ICC employees for any investigation or prosecution of Americans in Afghanistan and added that they could also be banned for prosecuting Israelis for alleged abuses against Palestinians.
Last year, Pompeo revoked the visa of the court’s chief prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, after she asked ICC judges to open an investigation into alleged war crimes in Afghanistan. The judges initially rejected the request, she appealed and the court authorized the investigation in March.
Dutch Foreign Minister Stef Blok said in a tweet Friday he was very disturbed by the United States’ measures and called on Washington not to sanction ICC staff.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Trump’s order is a matter of serious concern and he described EU members as steadfast supporters of the tribunal. Borrell said: “It is a key factor in bringing justice and peace, and it must be respected and supported by all nations.”
"The United Nations has taken note with concern about reports of Trump’s order," said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
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Trump targets the International Criminal Court for sanctions
