Overview
- On August 18 the U.S. announced sanctions that add ICC President Tomoko Akane to a list that already included other court officials, imposing asset freezes and U.S. travel bans.
- The designation now covers nine of the court's 18 judges, both deputy prosecutors, a former prosecutor and a staff member, which the ICC says will hinder judges and staff from doing their jobs.
- The ICC condemned the measures as an attack on judicial independence and vowed to continue investigating and prosecuting atrocity crimes.
- European institutions, the Netherlands and the U.N. publicly backed the court and have raised the possibility of measures such as EU 'blocking' rules to blunt U.S. extraterritorial sanctions.
- Japan has issued only a muted expression of disappointment while the ICC has appealed for strengthened funding and diplomatic support to protect operations and staff from chilling effects.