France also joined the ICC in denouncing the US move, expressing “dismay” as one of its judges, Nicolas Guillou, was among those sanctioned.<\/p>\n
The three other ICC officials named by the US are judge Kimberly Prost of Canada as well as deputy prosecutors Nazhat Shameem Khan of Fiji and Mame Mandiaye Niang of Senegal.<\/p>\n
Rubio condemned the court’s “politcisation, abuse of power, and illegitimate judicial overreach” in a statement announcing the sanctions.<\/p>\n
The ICC is a global court with the power to bring prosecutions for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.<\/p>\n
The court called the latest sanctions “a flagrant attack” against its independence and impartiality.<\/p>\n
“They constitute also an affront against… the rules-based international order and, above all, millions of innocent victims across the world,” it added.<\/p>\n
France’s foreign ministry criticised the sanctions as “in contradiction to the principle of an independent judiciary”, the AFP news agency reported.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Israeli PM Netanyahu welcomed the decision, calling it a “firm measure against the mendacious smear campaign against” Israel.<\/p>\n
According to the US State Department, Gillou is being sanctioned for authorising arrest warrants against Nethanyahu and Gallant.<\/p>\n
The US said Prost, the Canadian judge, is sanctioned for an investigation into US personnel in Afghanistan, adding that Khan and Niang are both responsible for “illegitimate actions against Israel”.<\/p>\n
The penalties mean any property and interests the four officials hold in the US are blocked.<\/p>\n