GENEVA – UN experts on Friday urged the US Senate to oppose a bill seeking to impose sanctions and cut funding to the International Criminal Court (ICC) after the tribunal issued arrest warrants for Israeli leaders accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“It is shocking to see a country that considers itself a champion of the rule of law trying to stymie the actions of an independent and impartial tribunal set up by the international community, to thwart accountability,” the experts said in a statement.
Stressing that threats to the ICC promote a “culture of impunity,” they called the bill “a mockery of the decades-long quest to place law above force and atrocity.”
The ICC is the legacy of the Nuremberg trials of Nazis, they said, along with the commitment to never allow heinous crimes, such as those committed during World War II, to go unpunished.
“The tireless work of brave legal professionals at the ICC is the main driver for accountability. The work of its prosecutors becomes the foundation upon which our efforts to uphold the integrity of the system of international law is resting,” the experts said.
They called upon all state parties to the ICC and on all member states in general to observe and respect international standards, as it relates to legal professionals working to bring accountability for “the most grave international crimes.”
“International standards provide that lawyers and justice personnel should be able to perform all of their professional functions without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference; and should not suffer, or be threatened with, prosecution or administrative, economic or other sanctions for any action taken in accordance with recognised professional duties, standards and ethics,” they warned.
The bill, called the Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act, threatens to sanction any individual working to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute American citizens or an official from an allied US country, including Israel.
It would also rescind any funds the US has designated for the ICC and prohibit any future money for the court.
“Imposing sanctions on justice personnel for fulfilling their professional responsibilities is a blatant violation of human rights, striking at the core of judicial independence and the rule of law. The passage of a bill that creates a blind spot for justice regarding certain countries not only legalises double standards and impunity but irreparably undermines the spirit of universality that the international justice system is built upon,” the experts said. “Such actions erode public trust in the impartiality and integrity of justice and set a dangerous precedent, politicising judicial functions and weakening the global commitment to accountability and fairness.”
They warned that if carried out, the sanctions would appear to amount to offenses against the administration of justice under Article 70 of the Rome Statute – which punishes efforts to impede or intimidate an official of the court or to retaliate against an official of the court on account of duties performed by that official.
“We urge US lawmakers to uphold the rule of law and the independence of judges and lawyers, and we call on States to respect the Court’s independence as a judicial institution and protect the independence and impartiality of those who work within the Court,” the experts said. -AA
