Article 19

12/16/2025 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 12/16/2025 10:41

ICC: States must defend justice and stand up to attacks on the rule of law

The United States government's threat to bring sanctions against the International Criminal Court (ICC), unless it pledges not to prosecute President Donald Trump and the administration's top officials, and Russia's retaliatory sentencing of the ICC prosecutor and judges, are an attack on international justice, accountability and the rule of law. ARTICLE 19 calls on the global community, in particular ICC member states, to defend the ICC and its mandate to independently investigate and prosecute the gravest crimes.

On 10 December - International Human Rights Day - a US government official informed Reuters that the Trump administration is calling for the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the ICC in 1998, to be amended to impede the Court from investigating the US president and top officials. In addition, the administration reportedly requested the ICC to abandon investigations into Israeli officials' role in the war on Gaza. It also asked to end an investigation into potential crimes of US troops in Afghanistan. The official stated the US could issue further sanctions against the Court and its officials if it failed to honour the request.

Previous US sanctions targeting the work of the ICC include those placed on prosecutor Karim Khan, deputy prosecutors, judges, the UN's special rapporteur on Palestine, and three Palestinian non-profit organisations.

The US has a history of periodic confrontation with the ICC's mandate dating back to its establishment in 1998, arguing that the Court threatens US sovereignty and national security. However, the current administration's attack on the ICC is unprecedented.

In yet another blatant attack on the ICC's independence, on 12 December 2025, Moscow City Court sentenced Karim Khan and eight ICC judges over the indictment of President Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova, the Russian Children's Rights Commissioner, for alleged war crimes in Ukraine. The City Court sentenced Khan to 15 years in prison, and the eight judges received prison sentences ranging from three and a half years to 15 years. All nine have been placed on an international wanted list.

Last week, the media has also reported on Karim Khan's claims that, in 2024, the United Kingdom has threatened to defund the ICC and leave the Rome statute if the ICC issues arrest warrants against Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant.

At a time when efforts to undermine the ICC are intensifying, it is essential that the Court is able to carry out its mandate fully and independently. Protecting its ability to act is indispensable to protecting the rights and lives of those who rely on it for justice.

The ICC also has a crucial role to play in ensuring accountability for grave violations of freedom of expression committed during armed conflict and other situations of violence. Recent crises have seen unprecedented attacks on the right to speak and to know, from the targeting of journalists and human rights defenders to deliberate internet shutdowns and intrusive surveillance of civilians. The Office of the Prosecutor's new Policy on Cyber-Enabled International Crimes makes clear that such conduct will not escape scrutiny.

The ICC remains essential in providing accountability for the victims and survivors of the gravest atrocity crimes and standing up for their humanity.

We cannot afford to remain silent in the face of unprecedented attacks on international justice and the rule of law, and, as advocates for human rights and freedom of expression, must continue working to end impunity for violations and the most horrific crimes against humanity.
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