U.S. Sanctions the International Criminal Court Itself

On 9 October 2026 the United States designated the International Criminal Court as an institution under Executive Order 14203 and blocked the court's property within U.S. reach. Earlier U.S. sanctions named the court's judges, prosecutors and officials. A 180-day licence keeps some dealings with the court lawful in the meantime.

On 9 October 2026, the United States Department of State announced that it had designated the International Criminal Court as an institution under section 1(a)(ii)(A) of Executive Order 14203. The department's fact sheet of the same day states that all property and interests in property of the court that are in the United States, or in the possession or control of U.S. persons, are blocked, and are to be reported to the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control. Confirmed

Earlier U.S. sanctions on the court named individual judges, prosecutors and officials. This designation names the court itself, as BBC News and the court's own statement both report. Confirmed This piece, part of this publication's Sanctions and Export Controls coverage, sets down what the ICC sanctions do, what each side has said, and where the published record disagrees.

How the ICC Sanctions Work

The State Department fact sheet states that the Treasury issued four general licences authorizing certain transactions involving the court, one of them a maintenance licence running 180 days. Confirmed

BBC News reports that the measures stop U.S. companies from providing goods or services to the court, such as banking or software. The Associated Press, in a report carried by CBC News, states that the sanctions cut the court off from U.S.-based financial services, technology companies and the use of U.S. dollars, and set a six-month timeline for U.S. companies and individuals to wind down their business with it. Confirmed as reported

BBC News reports that Washington describes the grace period as time for countries to negotiate a “solution to address” U.S. concerns, and that Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the measures had been structured to allow other countries to negotiate a possible solution. He called on U.S. allies that are members of the court, including the United Kingdom, to “rein in” the institution. Confirmed as reported

What Washington Has Said

Marco Rubio, U.S. Secretary of State, in the State Department statement of 9 October 2026. In his video address, as quoted by The Associated Press, the same sentence ends “operate against us.” Confirmed

The statement also says: “Either the ICC will end its threats, or we will end the ICC.” BBC News and The Associated Press both report the same words. Confirmed

BBC News reports that Rubio said the measures were intended to “defend US sovereignty” and accused the court of seeking to prosecute Americans. In the video address, according to The Associated Press, Rubio said: “The United States and the American people are not subject to the jurisdiction of this fake ICC.” Confirmed as reported

What the U.S. Is Demanding, in Two Accounts

The terms for lifting the sanctions are reported two ways. Le Monde reported on 10 October that the U.S. demands include the cancellation of the court's arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant, the closure of the investigation into U.S. military actions in Afghanistan, and a reform of the court's statute. BBC News reports that the new sanctions “do not say that those warrants must be withdrawn before the measures can be lifted,” and describes the Afghanistan investigation as one “the court has since closed.” Contradicted

BBC News reports that the administration objects to that past Afghanistan investigation and to the court's arrest warrants for Israeli officials, including Netanyahu. Netanyahu welcomed the sanctions, BBC reports, saying the court was “not a court” but a political body that threatened law-abiding democracies and “the very idea of national sovereignty.” Confirmed as reported

The Court's Answer

The court issued a statement the same day. It describes itself as an independent judicial institution “created by treaty and entrusted by 125 States Parties” with investigating and prosecuting genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of aggression. Of the designation, it says: “It is an attempt to obstruct the course of justice and to prevent the Court from doing what it was created to do. It is an assault on the rule of law and on the very foundations of the international legal order which strikes at the simple principle that no one stands above the law.” Confirmed

Tomoko Akane, President of the International Criminal Court, in the court's statement of 9 October 2026. Confirmed

The statement calls on states “to continue taking concrete actions, including to ensure that the Court continues to have the necessary means to continue its work.” Confirmed

Akane is herself under U.S. sanctions. Reuters, as carried by the Cyprus Mail, reported that the State Department designated her on 18 August 2026, together with Abdoulaye Seye, a senior trial lawyer at the court, and that the Treasury issued a general licence allowing transactions involving the two to be wound down through 17 September. Confirmed as reported

How Many People Have Been Sanctioned

The State Department's count is the department's statement of its own designations. Confirmed The number of the court's own judges, prosecutors and officials under sanction differs between BBC News and the court. Contradicted

Governments and the United Nations

The foreign ministers of Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom issued a joint statement on 9 October. BBC News reports that they said they “regret and strongly disagree with” the sanctions. The Associated Press quotes the statement: “If put into effect, these sanctions will have a significant impact on the court's work, its dedicated staff and their families.” Confirmed by two independent reports

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the U.S. decision “a serious blow to our collective pursuit of international criminal justice, of which the ICC is a key pillar,” according to BBC News. Confirmed as reported

The court sits in The Hague. BBC News reports that Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen has said the sanctions would seriously affect the court's ability to function. The Associated Press reports that the Netherlands has been preparing for the move for weeks, and that one possible measure is the European Union's blocking statute, which could be used to protect European court staff by preventing European companies from complying with the U.S. measures. Berendsen has called the blocking statute the “nuclear option,” according to the AP, and said the Netherlands has been in talks with the European Commission so that it can be enacted quickly if necessary. Confirmed as reported

A number of countries have withdrawn from the court this year, including Venezuela and Chad, according to The Associated Press. Confirmed as reported

The Detainees in The Hague

Among those awaiting trial in The Hague is Rodrigo Duterte, the former president of the Philippines, BBC News reports. Others awaiting trial or with pending appeals include former senior figures accused of war crimes in Libya, Sudan and the Central African Republic. BBC reports that the licences announced on 9 October include one allowing the court to continue “services for the operation of facilities used for the detention” of those it holds. Confirmed as reported

Professor Ryan Goodman of the New York University School of Law told BBC News that if the financial sanctions leave the court unable to conduct fair trials or appeals, detainees may have to be released “as a matter of law.” That is his assessment, reported as his. Confirmed as reported

The Order Behind the Designation

The White House, 6 February 2025, for the order; Reuters via the Cyprus Mail for 18 August; BBC News and The Associated Press both report the Nobel award and its timing, and the AP reports that the U.S. move long predated the prize announcement; the State Department for 9 October.

Where It Reaches a Household

The designation is a measure against one international court and those who do business with it. BBC News and The Associated Press name the services cut off: banking, software, other technology, and the use of U.S. dollars. Neither report names a tariff, a commodity or a consumer product. Confirmed

What the Record Shows

On 9 October 2026 the United States designated the International Criminal Court as an institution under Executive Order 14203, blocked its property within U.S. reach, and issued four general licences, one running 180 days. The court called the step an assault on the rule of law and asked its states parties for support. Eight governments including Canada said they disagree with it. What the U.S. requires before lifting the sanctions is reported differently by Le Monde and BBC News, and the count of court officials already under sanction differs between BBC News and the court.

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