Human rights groups sue Trump over ICC sanctions

Four human rights organisations, including Human Rights Watch, filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against US President Donald Trump over sanctions imposed on the International Criminal Court (ICC), arguing that the measures obstruct victims of war crimes from accessing justice. In a 101-page petition filed in a New York court, the groups requested the immediate lifting of the sanctions. They contend that the travel bans and the freezing of assets belonging to ICC judges and prosecutors violate US law, including First Amendment protections regarding freedom of speech. The complaint describes the measures as an "unlawful abuse of power" and a direct assault on the rule of law, the independence of the judiciary, and the principle of equal access to justice. The plaintiffs warned that these restrictions have severely undermined the ability to prosecute perpetrators of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. Trump’s executive order in February 2025 targeted eight judges, three prosecutors, a UN expert, and three human rights organisations. The sanctions followed the ICC’s November 2024 issuance of arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant regarding Israel's conduct in the war against Hamas in Gaza. The ICC stated there were reasonable grounds to believe both officials bore criminal responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Israel has strongly rejected these allegations and does not recognise the court's jurisdiction. Neither Israel nor the US are members of the ICC, and Jerusalem maintains that the Palestinian Authority's membership in the body does not grant the court jurisdiction over Israeli nationals. Trump’s order labelled the ICC’s actions against the US and Israel as "illegitimate and baseless," citing both the case against Israeli officials and the court’s investigations into alleged crimes by US forces in Afghanistan. The American Friends Service Committee, the Center for Constitutional Rights, and the Open Society Institute are also parties to the lawsuit. They argue that the financial and legal sanctions have forced the ICC to curtail a wide range of human rights and legal activities, violating their rights under the First and Fifth Amendments of the US Constitution and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The lawsuit comes as the ICC faces internal pressure and scrutiny from its more than 120 member states. Karim Khan, the former chief prosecutor who was placed on a US sanctions list last year, was removed from his post last month, nearly two years after sexual misconduct allegations were raised against him. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced last month that Washington would launch a "broad campaign to dismantle the threat the ICC poses to American sovereignty," stating that the US would pressure member states to withdraw from the court, sanction affiliated organisations, and restrict the travel of ICC staff to the United States.