People stand outside the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, Sept. 22, 2025. (Credit: Piroschka van de Wouw/Reuters)
The U.S. President Donald Trump administration has prepared sanctions targeting the entire International Criminal Court (ICC), which it could announce soon, according to two sources familiar with the matter, reports the Wall Street Journal (WSJ). Such a measure would further intensify its offensive against the international tribunal tasked with prosecuting war crimes and genocide around the world.
Sanctions against the court are ready, these sources say, although the precise timing of the announcement remains uncertain. WSJ cites officials who believe the decision could be finalized as soon as this week, during the United Nations General Assembly. The U.S. State Department did not immediately comment on the information.
Directly targeting the entire institution, as well as entities working with it, could seriously compromise the court's activities. Any general sanctions issued by the U.S. Treasury would prohibit American citizens and companies from providing funds, goods or services to the court without a license granted by the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control.
Banks tend to strictly enforce these types of sanctions due to their reliance on access to the U.S. financial system. Among the court's activities that could be affected by organization-wide sanctions are the purchase of IT and insurance services, the hiring of investigators and the handling of standard financial transactions, including paying dozens of American employees, the ICC's registrar and president have warned.
The Trump administration has never hidden its disdain for the court and has sought to undermine its authority through statements and sanctions. In July, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced a campaign aimed at isolating the court, calling on other countries to withdraw from the tribunal.
Washington has also imposed sanctions against several ICC judges and prosecutors but has so far refrained from targeting the court itself, although that option has long been considered. U.S. officials want the ICC to drop arrest warrants issued against Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as well as the previous investigation into U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan.
Trump's opposition to the ICC dates back to his first term. It resurfaced with a plan for sanctions against court officials drafted in November 2024, when Trump was reelected and the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza war.
Founded in 2002 by the international community, the ICC aims to prosecute war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. It exercises its jurisdiction only if a member state is unable or unwilling to try those accused of such atrocities itself. The United States has never been a member of the court.
