US sanctions on ICC trigger global civil
Thirty-eight civil society organizations have filed a joint legal brief in a U.S. Court, challenging the legality of sanctions against ICC officials and Palestinian human rights groups, arguing they violate rights and harm international justice.
Thirty-eight global civil society organizations filed a joint amicus curiae brief in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on September 23, 2026. The brief supports a lawsuit filed by the American Friends Service Committee, the Center for Constitutional Rights, Human Rights Watch, and the Open Society Institute, with the Coalition for the ICC secretariat assisting in its submission. The signatory organizations are represented by Mascarenhas Law PLLC.
Lawsuit challenges ICC sanctions
The lawsuit contests the legality of sanctions imposed under Executive Order 14203. That order, issued during the Trump administration, targeted ICC prosecutors and judges, a United Nations human rights expert, and three Palestinian human rights organizations. The sanctions were initiated after the ICC opened an investigation into alleged war crimes by U.S. Personnel in Afghanistan. They were also imposed following the court's issuance of arrest warrants for Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Sanctions harm civil society networks
The civil society brief argues the sanctions cause measurable and irreparable harm. They fracture the networks essential to the ICC's functioning. Designated entities have suffered loss of funding, staff, banking access, and partnerships.
The sanctions deter other organizations from engaging with the court. They damage cooperation across civil society. This disruption affects victim-witness connections, crime documentation, victim participation support, legal expertise, and state cooperation efforts.
Civil society condemns sanctions
Leaders of major human rights groups have condemned the measures. Alexis Deswaef, President of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), stated that the sanctions silence civil society and disrupt the networks that support victims seeking justice. Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General, warned that the sanctions threaten the ICC and the foundational Rome Statute. She noted that the resilience of civil society is demonstrated by the large number of organizations submitting the brief.
The brief referenced a report titled 'Criminalising Accountability: The US lawfare against the international justice system.' It contends that the sanctions violate fundamental rights to freedom of expression and association. The court will now review these arguments.
