Team Trump Steps Up Bid to Dismantle International Criminal Court: Report

President Donald Trump's administration is preparing to impose sanctions against the International Criminal Court (ICC), sources familiar with the matter have revealed. The move, which could be announced as soon as this week during the United Nations General Assembly meeting, would target the court itself, not just individual members, according to the sources.

This step would further escalate the US administration's long-standing hostility towards the ICC, which is responsible for prosecuting war crimes and genocide worldwide.

The Trump administration has consistently expressed its disdain for the court, working to undermine its authority. US officials have been vocal about their desire for the court to drop arrest warrants against Israeli leaders and to halt a previous probe into American troops in Afghanistan. In July, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced a campaign to isolate the court, urging other countries to withdraw from the tribunal.

While the State Department has not yet commented on the potential sanctions, sources indicate that the decision to impose them on the entire organization could be finalized soon.

Sanctions against the court would prohibit US citizens and companies from providing financial support or services to the ICC unless authorized by the US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). This could significantly impact the court's operations, including the procurement of IT services, hiring of investigators, and payment of American employees. The ICC's registrar and president have warned that such entity-wide sanctions could severely undermine the organization's ability to carry out its work.

The opposition to the ICC is not new for Trump; it originated during his first term and resurfaced following his re-election in 2024. The administration's plan to penalize ICC officials emerged after the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza conflict.

The International Criminal Court, established in 2002 by the international community, is tasked with prosecuting war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity. However, the US has never been a member of the court.