A coalition of four prominent advocacy organizations, led by Human Rights Watch, has initiated legal action against the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump to challenge its ongoing measures against the International Criminal Court (ICC).
The lawsuit argues that U.S.-imposed sanctions against ICC prosecutors and judges severely cripple global efforts to bring perpetrators of major international atrocities to justice.
Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, the legal complaint focuses on an executive order signed by President Trump last year, along with subsequent U.S. penalties levied against three Palestinian rights organizations and a United Nations human rights expert.
According to an official statement, the suit asserts that these actions represent a “blatantly illegal attack on international justice and should be struck down.”
The legal challenge marks the latest attempt by civil society organizations to counter what they characterize as systematic attempts by the Trump administration to undermine global legal frameworks and protect governments from international accountability.
“The fact that so many leading human rights and humanitarian organizations have come together to challenge Trump’s unlawful executive order demonstrates the widespread harm it is causing across civil society groups dedicated to bringing those responsible for grave crimes to justice,” said Andrew Loewenstein of Foley Hoag LLP, serving as lead counsel for the advocacy groups.
The joining organizations—which include the Open Society Institute, the Center for Constitutional Rights, and the American Friends Service Committee—assert that these legal and financial restrictions force them to “curtail a wide range of human rights and legal work in violation of their First and Fifth Amendment rights under the US Constitution and under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.”
Neither Israel nor the United States are state parties to the ICC, and both maintain that the tribunal lacks jurisdiction over their actions.
Speaking on condition of anonymity regarding active legal matters, a White House official dismissed the suit, stating that the court’s actions infringe upon the national security and sovereignty of the U.S. and its close ally, Israel. Requests for comment sent to the State Department were not immediately answered.
This legal confrontation arrives as the Hague-based court endures severe pressure, both internally and from its more than 120 member states. Former ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan was among those hit by U.S. sanctions last year; Khan was removed from his post last month following sexual misconduct allegations that first emerged nearly two years ago, according to reports from The Associated Press.
The sanctions targeting Khan and twelve other ICC officials were originally enacted after the tribunal issued arrest warrants for senior Israeli leadership, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, regarding the conflict in Gaza, as well as separate investigations into American personnel in Afghanistan.
”The Trump administration seeks a get out of jail free card for whomever it chooses. And with this case, we say no,” said Liz Evenson, the international justice director at Human Rights Watch, during a press briefing on Tuesday.
The lawsuit follows explicit warnings from U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who recently declared that Washington was initiating a “sweeping campaign to dismantle the threat posed by the International Criminal Court to U.S. sovereignty.”
In a recorded statement, Rubio outlined plans to pressure member nations to withdraw from the Rome Statute, penalize entities assisting the tribunal, and enforce travel bans against ICC staff. He added that nations benefiting from the “benefits of the U.S. security umbrella” would be pressured to reject the tribunal’s authority over U.S. citizens.
Shortly following Rubio’s declaration and Prosecutor Khan’s removal, several nations, including U.S. ally Venezuela, formally declared their withdrawal from the ICC.