US imposes sanctions on ICC President Tomoko Akane, according to Treasury Department

The sanctions freeze any US assets the individuals may have and essentially cut them off from the US financial system, with which almost all internationally operating banks have close ties.Follow us on GoogleJudge Tomoko Akane arrives prior to the announcement of the International Criminal Court (ICC) verdict that sentenced Malian Jihadist police chief Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud to 10 years in jail for war crimes and crimes against humanity.(photo credit: Eva Plevier/ANP/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)ByREUTERSAUGUST 18, 2026 20:24Updated: AUGUST 18, 2026 21:18The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions on Tomoko Akane, a Japanese judge who is president of the International Criminal Court, according to the US Treasury Department website.The move is the latest escalation in the Trump administration's campaign against The Hague-based court, which was established in 2002 by the international community to prosecute war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. The US is not a member of the court.The US last year imposed targeted sanctions on several ICC officials, including prosecutors and judges, citing ⁠the ICC's ​arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant, ​and a past probe into US troops in Afghanistan.The sanctions freeze any US assets the individuals may have and essentially cut them off from the US financial system, with which almost all internationally operating banks have close ties.In June, three International Criminal Court judges sued Trump and his administration over the sanctions, arguing the measures were unlawful.Japanese Judge Tomoko Akane, President of the International Criminal Court (ICC), delivers a speech during a press conference at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo. (credit: Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP via Getty Images)Rubio stepping up efforts to undermine 'corrupt, fatally politicized' ICCThe Treasury also issued a general license on Tuesday authorizing the wind-down of transactions involving Akane through September 17.US Secretary of State Marco Rubio last month said the administration would step up efforts to undermine the ICC, including with a diplomatic campaign aimed at persuading other countries to quit the institution.He argued that the court posed a threat to US personnel carrying out Trump's hardline immigration policies or strikes on boats accused of carrying drugs, as well as other US service members.Trump has said the campaign was aimed at defending Netanyahu and others from prosecution, rather than Trump himself.In a press statement published on the State Department's website, Rubio wrote, "The Trump Administration has been clear: the International Criminal Court (ICC) is a corrupt and fatally politicized supranational court that has maliciously abused its authority and exceeded its mandate. We will not tolerate its assault on state sovereignty."He concluded by saying, "The Trump Administration stands ready to take additional measures, if necessary, to systematically dismantle the ICC until it is incapable of threatening American sovereignty."Reuters found the Trump administration sanctions against ICC officials were intended in part to head off any future attempts to hold the Republican ​president or his officials accountable for US military action overseas.The United States ​has never been a member of the court. The ICC asserts jurisdiction only if a member state is unable or unwilling to prosecute atrocities itself.However, the ICC statute also gives the court the power to prosecute atrocity crimes committed on the territory of member states by ​nationals of non-member states.Jonah Davidov contributed to this report.Follow us on Google