ICC judges sue Trump administration over sanctions it imposed on them

Three International Criminal Court judges have sued US President Donald Trump and his administration over sanctions imposed on them last year, arguing the measures were unlawful.

In the lawsuit filed in the federal court in Manhattan, judges Kimberly Prost of Canada, Solomy Balungi Bossa of Uganda, and Reine Adelaide Sophie Alapini-Gansou of Benin say the sanctions were designed to exert extrajudicial pressure with the objective of punishing and coercing the judges.

The State and Treasury departments and the White House have not immediately responded to requests for comment.

The Trump administration imposed sanctions on several judges at the International Criminal Court last year in an unprecedented retaliation over the war tribunal’s issuance of an arrest warrant for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former defense minister Yoav Gallant, and a past decision to open a case into alleged war crimes by US troops in Afghanistan.

Sanctions severely hamper individuals’ abilities to carry out even routine financial transactions as any banks with ties to the United States, or that conduct transactions in dollars, are expected to comply with the restrictions.

The ICC, which was established in 2002, has international jurisdiction to prosecute genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes in member states or if a situation is referred by the UN Security Council.

Although the ICC has jurisdiction over war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide in its 125 member countries, some nations, including the US, China, Russia, and Israel, do not recognize its authority.