US sanctions four International Criminal Court judges

The U.S. on Thursday said it is sanctioning four International Criminal Court (ICC) judges via a part of a prior executive order President Trump issued in February.

The four judges that the U.S. said it is sanctioning are Reine Alapini-Gansou, Luz del Carmen Ibáñez Carranza, Solomy Balungi Bossa and Beti Hohler, according to a fact sheet from State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce’s office.

“We do not take this step lightly. It reflects the seriousness of the threat we face from the ICC’s politicization and abuse of power,” the fact sheet reads.

A part of Trump’s prior executive order restricts financial dealings in the U.S. or with Americans for “any foreign person determined by the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Attorney General to have directly engaged in any effort by the ICC to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute a protected person without consent of that person's country of nationality.” 

Secretary of State Marco Rubio explained the sanctions in a Thursday statement, saying, "These individuals directly engaged in efforts by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute nationals of the United States or Israel, without consent from the United States or Israel."

The ICC condemned the State Department's actions in a Thursday statement, calling the sanctions a "clear attempt to undermine the independence of an international judicial institution."