From the Liveblog of
Friday, February 7, 2025
Report: ICC prosecutor Karim Khan will be the first person hit with US sanctions on war crimes tribunal
THE HAGUE – International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan is the first person to be hit with economic and travel sanctions authorized by US President Donald Trump that target the war crimes tribunal over investigations of US citizens or US allies, two sources briefed on the matter tell Reuters.
Khan was named today in an annex – not yet made public – to an executive order signed by Trump a day earlier, a senior ICC official and another source, both briefed by US government officials, tell Reuters. They speak on condition of anonymity to discuss a confidential matter.
The sanctions include the freezing of US assets of those designated and barring them and their families from visiting the United States.
The order directs US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, in consultation with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, to submit a report within 60 days naming people who should be sanctioned.
Under an agreement between the United Nations and Washington, Khan should be able to travel regularly to New York to brief the UN Security Council on cases it had referred to the court in The Hague. The Security Council has referred the situations in Libya and Sudan’s Darfur region to the ICC.
“We trust that any restrictions taken against individuals would be implemented consistently with the host country’s obligations under the UN Headquarters agreement,” deputy UN spokesperson Farhan Haq says.
Khan was most recently in New York last week to brief the Security Council on Sudan.
“International criminal law is an essential element to fighting impunity, which is unfortunately widespread,” Haq says. “The International Criminal Court is its essential element, and it must be allowed to work in full independence.”
Trump’s move this week – repeating action he took during his first term – coincided with a visit to Washington by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who – along with his former defense minister – is wanted by the ICC over the war in Gaza.
