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Rights organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Monday urged member states of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to safeguard the court and combat impunity for international crimes at the Assembly of States Parties (ASP). In a press release, it the organization expressed the necessity to do so as the court is facing increasing threats, sanctions, and attacks by several states seeking to undermine its mandate.
According to HRW, numerous States Parties have sought to undermine the ICC’s function as a court of last resort. For instance, President Donald Trump issued an executive order in February 2025 that authorized the freezing of assets, entry bans and sanctions against ICC officials and individuals supporting the ICC’s work. The executive order has been used to impose sanctions on ICC court officials, a UN expert and Palestinian human rights organizations.
HRW also underlines that US sanctions can adversely affect the ICC’s goal to prevent impunity because financial institutions tend to adhere to US sanctions. This may result in a loss of funding and an inability to access bank accounts or other financial services of the court. In response, and in line with ICC justice Nicolas Guillou, one of the persons on the sanctions list, HRW recommended that the European Union (EU) use its blocking statute to counter the effect of US sanctions. This statute blocks the extra-territorial application of laws adopted by third countries considered to be contrary to international law.
Another pronounced issue is States Parties’ failure to arrest and surrender individuals against whom the ICC has issued arrest warrants. For instance, Hungary did not arrest Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after he visited Budapest in April 2025, and following this, formally withdrew from the ICC on June 2, 2025, with the withdrawal taking effect on June 2, 2026. Three other State Parties—Burkina Faso, Niger, and Mali—also announced their intention to withdraw in September 2025.
In addition, Russia, under the government of Vladimir Putin, issued arrest warrants in 2023 and 2024 against ICC officials in response to the warrants issued to Putin and Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov. The court also faced a second serious cyber attack in June. Cautious of this trend, Liz Evenson, HRW’s International Justice Director, stated that “government efforts to undermine the ICC reflect broader attacks on the global rule of law, aiming to disable institutions that seek to hold those responsible for the worst crimes to account.”
Finally, HRW emphasizes that the ICC continues to achieve meaningful outcomes in international justice. In March 2025, the Philippines arrested and surrendered former President Rodrigo Duterte who faces charges of crimes against humanity related to the country’s “war on drugs.” The ICC also issued milestone judgments regarding the Central African Republic and Darfur situations. On July 24, 2025, the ICC convicted two senior leaders of the Anti-Balaka movement. They were found guilty of numerous war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Bangui and the west of the Central African Republic. On October 6, 2025, the ICC convicted Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman, a former “Janjaweed” militia leader, of 27 counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Darfur, Sudan.
Scheduled December 1 to 6, 2025, in The Hague, Netherlands, the ASP will principally consider the issue of non-compliance by ICC States Parties. HRW’s Evenson emphasizes that the ICC “remains the court of last resort for thousands of victims and their families who have nowhere else to turn.”
The ICC, established in 2002, has jurisdiction over individuals suspected of committing international crimes enshrined in the Rome Statute, such as war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.
The post States Parties urged to act as ICC faces reocurring threats appeared first on JURIST - News.
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According to HRW, numerous States Parties have sought to undermine the ICC’s function as a court of last resort. For instance, President Donald Trump issued an executive order in February 2025 that authorized the freezing of assets, entry bans and sanctions against ICC officials and individuals supporting the ICC’s work. The executive order has been used to impose sanctions on ICC court officials, a UN expert and Palestinian human rights organizations.
HRW also underlines that US sanctions can adversely affect the ICC’s goal to prevent impunity because financial institutions tend to adhere to US sanctions. This may result in a loss of funding and an inability to access bank accounts or other financial services of the court. In response, and in line with ICC justice Nicolas Guillou, one of the persons on the sanctions list, HRW recommended that the European Union (EU) use its blocking statute to counter the effect of US sanctions. This statute blocks the extra-territorial application of laws adopted by third countries considered to be contrary to international law.
Another pronounced issue is States Parties’ failure to arrest and surrender individuals against whom the ICC has issued arrest warrants. For instance, Hungary did not arrest Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after he visited Budapest in April 2025, and following this, formally withdrew from the ICC on June 2, 2025, with the withdrawal taking effect on June 2, 2026. Three other State Parties—Burkina Faso, Niger, and Mali—also announced their intention to withdraw in September 2025.
In addition, Russia, under the government of Vladimir Putin, issued arrest warrants in 2023 and 2024 against ICC officials in response to the warrants issued to Putin and Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov. The court also faced a second serious cyber attack in June. Cautious of this trend, Liz Evenson, HRW’s International Justice Director, stated that “government efforts to undermine the ICC reflect broader attacks on the global rule of law, aiming to disable institutions that seek to hold those responsible for the worst crimes to account.”
Finally, HRW emphasizes that the ICC continues to achieve meaningful outcomes in international justice. In March 2025, the Philippines arrested and surrendered former President Rodrigo Duterte who faces charges of crimes against humanity related to the country’s “war on drugs.” The ICC also issued milestone judgments regarding the Central African Republic and Darfur situations. On July 24, 2025, the ICC convicted two senior leaders of the Anti-Balaka movement. They were found guilty of numerous war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Bangui and the west of the Central African Republic. On October 6, 2025, the ICC convicted Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman, a former “Janjaweed” militia leader, of 27 counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Darfur, Sudan.
Scheduled December 1 to 6, 2025, in The Hague, Netherlands, the ASP will principally consider the issue of non-compliance by ICC States Parties. HRW’s Evenson emphasizes that the ICC “remains the court of last resort for thousands of victims and their families who have nowhere else to turn.”
The ICC, established in 2002, has jurisdiction over individuals suspected of committing international crimes enshrined in the Rome Statute, such as war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.
The post States Parties urged to act as ICC faces reocurring threats appeared first on JURIST - News.
Continue reading...
Note: We don't have any responsibilities about this news. Its been posted here by Feed Reader and we had no controls and checking on it. And because News posted here will be deleted automatically after 21 days, threads are closed so that no one spend time to post and discuss here. You can always check the source and discuss in their site.