The International Bar Association (IBA) has called on states to oppose US sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC) and respect the court’s judicial independence.

IBA executive director Mark Ellis said the sanctions “undo decades of progress for victims and weaken the rule of law globally”, calling the ICC “the cornerstone of the international justice architecture”, helping bring justice to victims of “atrocities that deeply shock the conscience of humanity”.

He condemned “attacks from those seeking to undermine the court’s authority and obstruct its investigations”.

Sanctions were imposed on the ICC and its officials last week by the US government, following an executive order issued by President Donald Trump. The order accused the ICC of “illegitimate and baseless actions targeting America and our close ally Israel”.

Many countries expressed their “unwavering support” for the ICC in response. Nearly 80 countries, including France, Germany and the UK, reaffirmed their support for the ICC’s independence and integrity in a joint statement, highlighting its role in ensuring accountability for grave international crimes and justice for victims. 

Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Mexico and Nigeria also agreed, although Australia, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Italy declined to support it.

Ellis highlighted the court’s work in Afghanistan, Darfur and Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Ukraine, and ongoing proceedings against suspects from the Central African Republic, Mali and Uganda, among others. He said sanctions could severely impact the ICC’s operations across all areas it is investigating and prosecuting, although he did not directly mention Israel.  

Ellis added: “By imposing sanctions, victims of international crimes will suffer greatly, and their effects would be felt far beyond the court, including by witnesses protected by the court and human rights defenders and civil society organisations cooperating with the court’s work. At this critical time for international justice and the rule of law, the US administration should respect the independence of international judicial institutions.”

The Bar Council of England and Wales supported the IBA’s call, with Bar Council chair Barbara Mills KC, saying: “We strongly oppose political threats to the international rule of law and stand with the [IBA] in calling on all states to respect and uphold the independence of international courts.”

Kate Orlovsky, director of the IBA’s International Criminal Court and International Criminal Law (ICC/ICL) programme, said: “We condemn in the strongest terms policies of active opposition against the court in the form of financial sanctions, travel bans and the initiation of criminal proceedings against ICC officials.”

Trump claimed the ICC had “abused its power” by issuing arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant, which he said “set a dangerous precedent”. Israel supported the move, having consistently rejected the ICC’s investigations into Gaza, ongoing since 2021.

Trump’s executive order includes measures for designated individuals, with the Guardian confirming that the ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan KC and his family had been subject to financial sanctions, in addition to his wife and children having travel bans.

Sanctions were first imposed by the Trump administration in 2020, but these were revoked by the Biden administration the following year. The Biden administration stated that sanctions were “not an effective or appropriate strategy for addressing the United States’ concerns with the ICC”.

The US is not a member of the ICC and has consistently refused to accept the ICC’s jurisdiction over its officials or citizens.

Currently, there are 125 ICC members, with Ukraine being the most recent signatory to the founding treaty, the Rome Statute. According to the statue, all states are required to fully cooperate with the ICC in its investigations and prosecutions of crimes.

Former ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda, Gambia’s high commissioner in the UK, recently delivered the Bar Council’s annual international rule of law lecture in London.

The IBA is a long-term supporter of the ICC through its ICC/ICL programme and maintains an office in the Hague, where the court is situated.

In December, the IBA called upon states to demonstrate unequivocal support for the ICC and protect the court and those collaborating with it from threats and attacks.

At the IBA’s annual conference in Mexico City last September, it awarded Iranian-Canadian lawyer Sam Sasan Shoamanesh, who works for the ICC, its annual Human Rights Award.