U.S. sanctions the ICC as court says it will continue its work

The United States has designated the International Criminal Court itself for sanctions, extending measures previously aimed at individual judges and prosecutors. The Treasury Department says the Court has been added to its blocked-persons list under Executive Order 14203. U.S.-based property belonging to the ICC is blocked, and transactions by U.S. persons are prohibited unless an exemption or Treasury licence applies. The restrictions are not a simple overnight cutoff. Treasury issued general licences for certain activity involving the Court, including a 180-day authorization for maintaining its operations, as well as permissions covering specified software and telecommunications services, pensions and detainees. Those carve-outs give the Court and its member states a limited period to address Washington’s concerns, while leaving the sanctions’ broader effects in place. The Trump administration says the ICC has overstepped by investigating Americans and Israeli officials, and that the United States does not accept the Court’s jurisdiction over U.S. citizens. The Court rejected the designation as an attempt to obstruct justice and said it would continue its work independently. Its deputy prosecutor told Reuters the sanctions would not stop investigations or prosecutions. The move drew objections from Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. The Netherlands, where the Court is based, and EU officials say they are looking at ways to keep it functioning. The practical impact will depend on how banks, technology providers and other service companies respond, and on whether European governments use available protections against the U.S. measures. The announcement came hours after former ICC judge Navi Pillay received the Nobel Peace Prize, but AP reports the sanctions plan long predated the award. This is a major escalation in Washington’s dispute with the Court, not evidence that the prize triggered the action. [Our earlier post explains Pillay’s Nobel award and career.](https://www.mushimu.com/post/8844) Sources: [Associated Press](https://apnews.com/article/us-icc-trump-rubio-4ea3555403e3c695d8f81dc473515d9b), [Reuters](https://ca.marketscreener.com/news/us-imposes-sanctions-on-international-criminal-court-hours-after-former-judge-wins-nobel-ce785ddcd88bf325), [U.S. Treasury OFAC](https://ofac.treasury.gov/recent-actions/20261009), [U.S. State Department fact sheet](https://www.state.gov/releases/office-of-the-spokesman/2026/10/imposing-sanctions-on-the-international-criminal-court-2/), and [the ICC’s response](https://www.icc-cpi.int/news/icc-strongly-rejects-us-sanctions-against-institution).  [Image source and CC BY-SA 4.0 licence](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Hague_International_Criminal_Court_building_seen_from_Maurits_Kiekpad.jpg).