Urgent call for action: States must act now to protect the International Criminal Court from unlawful US attacks

The Coalition for the International Criminal Court (CICC), the more than 180 undersigned organisations from over 60 countries representing all regions, and dozens of legal experts, human rights defenders and members of the European Parliament, condemn unequivocally and in the strongest terms the decision byco the United States (US) to impose unlawful sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC). This unprecedented measure represents a direct attack against the rule of law, the independence of the Court and international justice, ultimately undermining the rights of millions of victims and survivors of mass atrocities worldwide. 

The ICC has shown remarkable resilience in steadfastly discharging its mandate in the face of escalating attacks. Now, States Parties must match this commitment by defending the Court they themselves established and protecting those who cooperate with it. Condemnations alone are not enough; coordinated action is urgently needed to protect the Court’s ability to function.

On 9 October 2026, the US announced the imposition of sanctions against the ICC as an institution under Executive Order 14203. These sanctions mark the gravest escalation in the sustained campaign carried out by the US with the declared aim of dismantling the ICC “brick by brick” for having investigated crimes allegedly committed on the territory of a State Party by US nationals or their allies, in particular Israeli nationals. Under the Rome Statute, the Court may exercise jurisdiction over crimes committed on the territory of a State Party, irrespective of the nationality of the alleged perpetrator. 

Since February 2025, the Trump administration has imposed sanctions on the former ICC Prosecutor, Karim Khan; both Deputy Prosecutors; the ICC President and eight other judges; a staff member and judicial candidate; a UN Special Rapporteur; and three Palestinian human rights organisations. 

These measures aim to undermine the Rome Statute system as a whole and to prevent the investigation and prosecution of international crimes. 

Executive Order 14203 prohibits US persons from providing material support or services to designated persons and entities, including financial services, and exposes non-US persons to the risk of secondary sanctions for engaging in conduct prohibited under the Executive Order. US persons who violate it may face criminal penalties of up to 20 years’ imprisonment and fines of up to 1 million USD, as well as civil penalties. 

Although the Executive Order contains a six month wind-down period and exemptions for certain services, significant risks remain. Given the global reliance on the US financial and IT systems, even non-US service providers, including banks, may stop rendering their services to the ICC out of fear of penalties or reprisals from the US Treasury. This could impact the Court’s ability to maintain a bank account, receive financial contributions from States Parties, make payments, pay staff and maintain essential operations. 

The Netherlands, as the host country, and all States Parties are responsible for ensuring the ICC can maintain access to services critical to its operations. The Court must be able to continue to carry out its core functions, including investigating alleged crimes; holding hearings; protecting victims and witnesses; and providing legal aid services.  

For victims, survivors and witnesses in more than a dozen situation countries under investigation by the Court across the globe, the consequences could be profound. Many have waited years for justice, recounted traumatic experiences and placed their trust in the ICC as a last resort for justice. Any disruption to the ICC’s mandate and operations risks impeding their right to justice. It threatens decades of advances in accountability and justice efforts, leaving victims of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide without a meaningful prospect for accountability, truth and reparations.  

The sanctions are already undermining justice efforts. The three Palestinian NGOs designated for cooperating with the Court immediately lost access to their bank accounts, funds, IT services and partners, impeding their work. The damage does not end with those targeted; the sanctions have created a chilling effect and impacted freedom of expression and association worldwide. Sanctions on the Court as an institution risk deepening that effect. Ultimately, victims, families of victims and survivors will pay the biggest price. 

The US, which is not a State Party, is blatantly attacking the world’s only permanent international criminal court through measures that leverage its position within the global financial system. If the 125 States Parties to the Rome Statute allow these attacks to undermine the Court’s ability to function, the consequences would extend far beyond the ICC, threatening the broader rule of law, states’ sovereignty and systems of justice at the national, regional and international levels. 

Statements of concern and condemnations are no longer a sufficient response to this attack. A coordinated response can no longer be delayed. Three decades ago, States made a promise that no one, no matter how powerful, will be shielded from accountability for international crimes. Victims and survivors have waited decades for a Court capable of delivering justice regardless of power or nationality, and today, the ICC is facing unprecedented pressure precisely because it seeks to apply the law equally. States Parties established the Court and are uniquely placed to safeguard its independence and effectiveness. Failure to respond decisively risks weakening the international justice system they pledged to uphold. 

The CICC calls on all States Parties, individually and collectively, to: 

• Denounce publicly, unequivocally, in the strongest terms possible and at the highest political level the institutional sanctions against the ICC and those cooperating with it as an unlawful attack on judicial independence, the rule of law and victims. 

• Immediately adopt or activate blocking measures at the national and regional level – including the immediate adoption of the EU Blocking Statute (Council Regulation (EC) No 2271/96) and equivalent domestic legislation elsewhere – to shield those designated, including the Court and its officials, the UN Special Rapporteur and civil society organisations, from the extraterritorial reach of these sanctions. 

• Guarantee that the Court and those cooperating with it can have access to banking and other essential services, including by: 

• Providing legal certainty to service providers by taking a clear legal position on the non-extraterritorial application of sanctions and making this legal position publicly available through letters or written statements. 

• Engaging proactively and regularly with banks, financial institutions, IT companies and others to reaffirm the unlawfulness of the sanctions, clarify that they should not be enforced extra-territorially, reject over-compliance or de-risking strategies and stop automatic or externalised compliance. 

• Ensure that all relevant ministries, including foreign affairs, justice, finance, treasury and digital affairs, coordinate, including at the regional level, to develop whole-of-government solutions. 

• Apply protection and solutions equally to civil society, human rights defenders and survivors targeted with sanctions or at risk due to their cooperation with the Court, extending every statement, solution, démarche and funding measure to include civil society organisations designated and those at risk, without distinction. 

• Find concrete measures to mitigate the impact of sanctions on civic space, freedom of speech and freedom of association. 

• Build and invest in economic, financial and tech sovereignty and resilience to reduce structural dependency on US service providers. 

• Explore all possible diplomatic and legal avenues to challenge the sanctions and their legality under international law, including by supporting any legal challenge raised by designated persons in the US and through a referral to the International Court of Justice.  

• Publicly and strongly reaffirm their commitment to the Rome Statute and continue to comply fully with their obligations under the Rome Statute, including funding, cooperation and the arrest and surrender of all persons subject to ICC warrants, without exception, delay, or selectivity. 

• Publicly and clearly oppose any initiatives aimed at weakening the Court, including attempts to amend the Rome Statute to limit its jurisdiction or independence and attempts to influence prosecutorial priorities, including efforts to sideline specific situations, such as Afghanistan or Palestine. 

• Refuse, without exception, coercion by a non-State Party to influence votes, positions, or conduct within the ASP or any other body of the Rome Statute system. 

• Ensure any ICC-related meeting is held in a country that ICC officials and staff and civil society organisations, including those designated, can access safely and without threats.  

Signed by;

1. Organisations

1. 11.11.11
2. A World Without Chemical and Biological Weapons (WWW)
3. Action pour la Justice et Promotion des Droits de l’Homme (ARJPDH)
4. Action pour le Développement Intégral de l’Homme et de Tout l’Homme au Modèle de Kizito-Anuarite
5. Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel
6. Afghanistan Organization for Development of Human Right (AODHR)
7. African Development and Peace Initiative (ADPI)
8. African Initiatives for a Democratic World Order 
9. Al Haq
10. Al Mezan Center for Human Rights
11. Al-Jazeera Observatory for Human Rights
12. ALTSEAN-Burma
13. Amman Center for Human Rights Studies(ACHRS)
14. Amnesty International
15. Asia Justice Coalition
16. Asociación Americana de Juristas/American Association of Jurists
17. Asociación Pro Derechos Humanos
18. Asociación Pro Derechos Humanos España
19. Association Cultures du Monde
20. Association Marocaine des Droits Humains (AMDH)
21. Atrocities Watch Africa
22. Australian Centre for International Justice
23. Avocats Sans Frontières 
24. Bahrain Human Rights Society (BHRS)
25. Bajito Under Africa
26. Bangladesh Integrated Social Advancement Programme
27. Barreau de Namur-Dinant
28. Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies
29. Center for Civil Liberties
30. Center for Constitutional Rights
31. Center for Justice and Accountability
32. Center for Prisoners’ Rights
33. Centre marocain pour la loi et la paix
34. Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales (CELS)
35. Centro de Investigación y Promoción de los Derechos Humanos (CIPRODEH)
36. Chinese Initiative on International Law 
37. Citizens’ Assembly (Yurttaşlık Derneği) 
38. Citizens for Global Solutions
39. Civic Committee for Human Rights (CCHR)
40. Civil Society Institute – Armenia
41. Civitas Maxima
42. Clinique de droit international pénal et humanitaire (Université Laval, Quebec, Canada)
43. Coalition Guinéenne pour la Cour Pénale Internationale (CGCPI)
44. Coalition tunisienne pour la Cour pénale internationale
45. Collectif de Sauvegarde de la LADDH Algérie
46. Colombes de la Nature
47. Comisión de Derechos Humanos de El Salvador
48. Comisión Ecuménica de Derechos Humanos
49. Committee on the Administration of Justice (CAJ, Northern Ireland) 
50. COMPPART Foundation for Justice and Peacebuilding
51. Corporación Humanas, Centro Regional de Derechos Humanos y Justicia de Género
52. DAWN
53. Defence of Human Rights and Public Services Trust
54. Documenta – Center for Dealing with the Past
55. Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR)
56. Ethiopian Human Rights Council (EHRCO)
57. EuroMed Rights
58. European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR)
59. Exodus Charity Organization
60. FIBGAR – Baltasar Garzon International Foundation
61. Finnish League for Human Rights
62. Fondation congolaise pour la promotion de droits humains et la paix
63. Fondation René Cassin – Institut internationale des droits de l’homme
64. Foundation Sunflowers
65. Global Justice Center
66. Groupe LOTUS
67. Hellenic League for Human Rights
68. Help Not Handcuffs, Inc.
69. Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly Vanadzor
70. Holistic Empowerment for Development
71. Housing and Land Rights Network – Habitat International Coalition
72. Human Rights Agenda Association (IHGD)
73. Human Rights and Humanitarian Development Initiatives 
74. Human Rights Centre ZMINA
75. Human Rights Commission of Pakistan
76. Human Rights League (LDH, Belgium)
77. Human Rights Now
78. Humanitarian Law Center
79. HuMENA for Human Rights and Civic Engagement
80. Impact: Center against Human Trafficking and Sexual Violence in Conflict
81. IMPARSIAL – The Indonesian Human Rights Monitor
82. Indonesian Legal Aid Association for Justice 
83. İnsan Hakları Derneği/Human Rights Association (İHD)
84. Institute for Environmental Security
85. Institute for the Rule of Law of the Union Internationale des Avocats (UIA-IROL)
86. Instituto Latinoamericano para una Sociedad y un Derecho Alternativos (ILSA)
87. International Association of Democratic Lawyers (IADL)
88. International Commission of Jurists
89. International Commission of Jurists, Norwegian Section (ICJ Norway)
90. International Community Care e.V.
91. International Network of Civil Liberties Organizations
92. International Platform of Jurists for East Timor
93. International Service for Human Rights
94. Iranian Center for International Criminal Law
95. Irish Council for Civil Liberties
96. JURDI – Juristes pour le respect du droit international
97. Just Access e.V.
98. Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law
99. Kenya Human Rights Commission 
100. Kenyan Section of the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ Kenya)
101. Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group
102. Kids for Kids
103. Kimbé Rèd FWI
104. Kurdish Organizations Network Coalition for the International Criminal Court (KONCICC)
105. Kurdistan Organizations Network to Abolish Nuclear and Mass Destruction Weapons (KONW)
106. Kurdistan Without Genocide
107. Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada
108. LDH (Ligue des droits de l’Homme/droits humains)
109. League for the Defence of Human Rights in Iran (LDDHI)
110. Lebanese Center for Human Rights (CLDH)
111. Legal Action Worldwide (LAW)
112. Libya Crimes Watch (LCW)
113. Life campaign to abolish the death sentence in Kurdistan Network
114. Liga Mexicana por la Defensa de los Derechos Humanos
115. Liga voor de Rechten van de Mens
116. Liga voor Mensenrechten
117. Ligue Pour La Paix, Les Droits De L’homme Et La Justice (LIPADHOJ)
118. Ligue Sénégalaise des Droits Humains
119. Ligue tunisienne des droits de l’homme
120. LingvaLexa
121. Maldivian Democracy Network (MDN)
122. MARUAH (Working Group for ASEAN Human Rights Mechanisms, Singapore)
123. Mnemonic
124. Netherlands Helsinki Committee 
125. No Peace Without Justice (NPWJ)
126. Norwegian Council for Tolerance & Peace (NCTP)
127. Norwegian Helsinki Committee
128. Observatoire des droits de l’homme au Rwanda- ODHR
129. Observatorio Ciudadano
130. OPORA in Poland Foundation
131. Orde van Vlaamse Balies
132. Ordre français des avocats du barreau de Bruxelles
133. Organisatión Nationale des Droits de l’Homme du Senegal (ONDH)
134. Organization Against Weapons of Mass Destruction in Kurdistan
135. Organization of the Justice Campaign (OJC)
136. Palestinian Association for Human Rights (Witness)
137. Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR)
138. PAX
139. Philippine Alliance of Human Rights Advocates (PAHRA)
140. Philippine Coalition for the International Criminal Court (PCICC)
141.      Philippine Human Rights Information Center (PhilRights)
142. Physicians for Human Rights
143. Platform for Peace and Humanity
144. Protection of Rights Without Borders
145. Quê Me: Vietnam Committee on Human Rights (VCHR)
146. REDRESS
147. Refugees in Libya – APS
148. The Reckoning Project
149. Reporters Without Borders (RSF)
150. Rights for Peace
151. Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center
152. Rohingya Maìyafuìnor Collaborative Network
153. Route Justice
154. Southern Africa Litigation Centre (SALC)
155. Stichting Venezolaanse Vluchtelingen
156. Stop Ecocide Foundation
157. StoptheDrugWar.org
158. Students for Global Democracy Uganda
159. Sudan Social Development Organization SUDO
160. Swedish Peace and Arbitration Society (SPAS)
161. Synergy for Justice
162. Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCM)
163. Tegaru Initiatives for Peace and Rehabilitation 
164. The Arab Coalition for the International Criminal Court (ACICC)
165. The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)
166. The Legal Agenda
167. The Legal Resources Centre
168. The Palestinian Human Rights Organization (PHRO)
169. The Public Committee Against Torture in Israel
170. The Rights Forum
171. TRIAL International
172. Turkish Coalition for the ICC
173. Union for Civil Liberty (UCL)
174. United Nations Association Sweden
175. UpRights
176. Vision GRAM-International
177. Vous et Vos Droits
178. Women’s Initiatives for Gender Justice (WIGJ)
179. World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) 
180. World Without Genocide
181. Young World Federalists
182. Youth Compassion for Humanity Uganda
183. Youth for Peace and Dialogue between Cultures
184. Zarga Organization for Rural Development
185. Zimbabwe Human Rights Association

2. Individuals

1. Ahmed Aloui, Association tunisienne de défense des libertés individuelles
2. Alessandra Moretti, Member of the European Parliament
3. Alirio Uribe Muñoz, Defensor de Derechos humanos
4. Andrés Mauricio Balcázar Suárez, Colectivo de Abogados José Alvear Restrepo
5. Aodhán Ó Ríordáin, Member of the European Parliament
6. Benjamin Fiorini, Université Paris 8
7. Catarina Vieira, Member of the European Parliament
8. Cecilia Strada, Member of the European Parliament
9. César Luena, Member of the European Parliament
10. Chloé Ridel, Member of the European Parliament
11. Christophe Clergeau, Member of the European Parliament
12. Claire Fita, Member of the European Parliament
13. Consuelo Morales, Ciudadanos en Apoyo a los Derechos Humanos, A.C.
14. Dr Parisa Zangeneh, Independent
15. Dr. Gunal Kursun, Insan Hakları Gundemi Dernegi
16. Edgar Boydens, Former Dean of the Brussels Bar
17. Eric Sargiacomo, Member of the European Parliament 
18. Estelle Ceulemans, Member of the European Parliament
19. Eva Sanjuan Guerrero, EP Assistant
20. Evin Incir, Member of the European Parliament
21. Dr. Fannie Lafontaine, Lawyer and Professor at Faculté de droit de l’Université Laval
22. Dr. Farah Safi, Professor in law
23. Farhatullah Babar, Human Rights Cell, Pakistan Peoples Party
24. Dr. Florence Bellivier, Professor in law and criminal science, University Paris I Panthéon Sorbonne
25. Dr. François Dubuisson, Professor in international law, University Libre de Bruxelles
26. Dr.Gunal Kursun, lawyer and human rights activist
27. Hana Jalloul Muro, Member of the European Parliament 
28. Indira Rosenthal, Independent
29. Insaf Rezagui-Sbeih, Université Paris Cité; JURDI
30. Isabelle Fouchard, CNRS/Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne
31. Jean-Marc Germain, Member of the European Parliament
32. Joanna Scheuring-Wielgus, Member of the European Parliament
33. Kaari Mattila, Academic
34. Krzysztof Smiszek, Member of the European Parliament 
35. Lara Wolters, Member of the European Parliament
36. Laura Ballarín Cereza, Member of the European Parliament 
37. Luc Walleyn, Lawyer
38. Marcel Bakanga Awachango, Europe Coordinator, Coalition Nationale (CPI RDC)
39. Marco Tarquinio, Member of the European Parliament
40. Marta Temido, Member of the European Parliament
41. Mathilde Lutak, Jurist in international law 
42. Matjaz Nemec, Member of the European Parliament 
43. Mounir Satouri, Member of the European Parliament
44. Mounir Satouri, Member of the European Parliament
45. Murielle Laurent, Member of the European Parliament
46. Nadia Attaire, Jurist in international law 
47. Nora Mebarek, Member of the European Parliament
48. Patrick Baudouin, Lawyer and Honorary President of the Ligue des Droits de l’Homme and of the FIDH 
49. Penelope Faulkner, Quê Me: Vietnam Committee on Human Rights (VCHR)
50. Pierre Jouvet, Member of the European Parliament 
51. Rafendi Djamin, Human Rights Working Group (HRWG), Indonesia’s NGO Coalition for International Human Rights Advocacy
52. Raphaël Glucksmann, Member of the European Parliament
53. René Repasi, Member of the European Parliament
54. Sandra Gómez López, Member of the European Parliament 
55. Sandro Ruotolo, Member of the European Parliament 
56. Sarah Kasande, International human rights lawyer
57. Sarah Sameur, Avocate au Barreau de Paris
58. Dr. Sébastien Touzé, International law Professor and Director of the Fondation René Cassin – Institut internationale des droits de l’homme
59. Terje Einarsen, University of Bergen
60. Thomas Verfuss, Journalists For Justice
61. Tiemo Wölken, Member of the European Parliament
62. Tineke Strik, Member of the European Parliament
63. Valérie Malabat, Professor
64. Vesna Teršelič, Antifascist League
65. Zoran Pusić, Civic Committee for Human Rights (CCHR)