| "Imposing Sanctions on the International Criminal Court" | |
 | |
 Front page of Executive Order 14203 | |
| Type | Executive order |
|---|---|
| Number | 14203 |
| President | Donald Trump |
| Signed | February 6, 2025 (2025-02-06) |
| Summary | |
| Order imposing sanctions against theInternational Criminal Court (ICC) based inThe Hague, the Netherlands | |
Executive Order 14203, titled "Imposing Sanctions on the International Criminal Court", is anexecutive order signed byUnited States presidentDonald Trump on February 6, 2025. The order imposes sanctions against theInternational Criminal Court (ICC) based inThe Hague, Netherlands.[1][2]
The order includes visa restrictions and financial penalties for people who help the ICC investigate US citizens and US allies.
TheInternational Criminal Court (ICC) can prosecute people worldwide for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. 125 nations are member of the Court,[3] but neither the US nor Israel have chosen to become members.[4] During Trump's first presidency, he imposed sanctions against the ICC's chief prosecutor,Fatou Bensouda, and one of her associates, as punishment for investigating possible US war crimes inAfghanistan.[3]
In November 2024, the ICC issuedarrest warrants for theIsraeli prime minister,Benjamin Netanyahu, andYoav Gallant, who at the time was theIsraeli defense minister. Israel and the United States opposed the decision. In the week prior to this executive order, the Republican majority in theUS Senate tried to pass sanctions against the ICC, but was blocked by Democratic senators.[3]
A month prior to the order, the ICC anticipated that the incomingTrump administration would issue financial sanctions, and paid its staff three months' salary in advance.[3]
The order imposes sanctions against theInternational Criminal Court based inThe Hague, Netherlands. The order includes visa restrictions and financial penalties for people who help the ICC investigate US citizens and US allies.[5] It also imposed sanctions against ICC prosecutorKarim Khan.[6]
The order is intended as punishment for the arrest warrants issued by the ICC against Netanyahu and Gallant. They are suspected of war crimes and crimes against humanity, allegedly committed by theIsraeli forces in theGaza Strip during theGaza war.[5]
On July 9, 2025,Marco Rubio, the USsecretary of state, announced that he was drawing on the order to impose sanctions againstFrancesca Albanese, theUnited Nationsspecial rapporteur for human rights in the Palestinian territories. Rubio claimed Albanese was antisemitic, supported terrorism, and expressed "open contempt" for the US, Israel, and western countries, and said the sanctions were prompted by her "illegitimate and shameful" attempts to get the ICC to act against "officials, companies, and executives" in Israel and the US.[7]
