State parties to the International Criminal Court (ICC) have condemned President Donald Trump’s sanctions against the institution.
Trump accused the world’s first permanent international war crimes court of taking “illegitimate and baseless actions” against the US and its ally, Israel.
In response, he imposed financial and visa restrictions on individuals and their families who assisted the international war crimes court in investigating American citizens.
The international war crimes court recently issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes in Gaza.
The ICC said it found reasonable grounds to believe that Netanyahu and Gallant acted as civilian superiors and intentionally directed attacks against a civilian population. A Hamas commander was also subject to an arrest warrant.
In Thursday’s order, Trump accused the Hague-based international war crimes court of creating a “shameful moral equivalency” between Hamas and Israel by issuing the warrants at the same time.
Tomoko Akane, ICC president, said the order harmed the court’s independence and deprived millions of innocent victims of atrocities of justice and hope.
On Friday, she urged the court’s 125 state parties, civil society, and the international community to defend the institution.
Hours later, 79 state parties released a joint statement reaffirming their support for the international war crimes court.
“As strong supporters of the ICC, we regret any attempts to undermine the Court’s independence, integrity, and impartiality,” the statement reads.
“We are committed to ensuring the ICC’s business continuity so that the Court can continue to carry out its functions effectively and independently.”
Countries that signed the statement include Nigeria, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Afghanistan, Ghana, France, Gambia, and South Africa. Others include Poland, Denmark, Spain, Namibia, Luxembourg, Jordan, Finland, Sierra Leone, and Mexico.
The US and Israel are not ICC member states.
