United States sanctions ICC judges for 'targeting Israel'
by Mike Heuer · UPIDec. 18 (UPI) -- The State Department has sanctioned two more International Criminal Court judges for undertaking alleged politically motivated actions against Israel, despite Israel not being a member state.
The ICC judges are Gocha Lordkipanidze of Georgia and Erdenebalsuren Damdin of Mongolia, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on Thursday.
"These individuals have directly engaged in efforts by the ICC to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute Israeli nationals, without Israel's consent, including voting with the majority in favor of the ICC's ruling against Israel's appeal on Dec. 15," Rubio said.
The ICC on Monday rejected Israel's appeal to end the ICC's Gaza war investigation.
"The ICC has continued to engage in politicized actions targeting Israel, which set a dangerous precedent for all nations," Rubio said. "We will not tolerate ICC abuses of power that violate the sovereignty of the United States and Israel and wrongly subject U.S. and Israeli persons to the ICC's jurisdiction."
Rubio said the U.S. and Israeli officials are not party to the Rome Statute that created the ICC, and both nations reject the ICC's claimed jurisdiction.
"We will continue to respond with significant and tangible consequences to the ICC's lawfare and overreach," Rubio said.
Thursday's sanctions are in addition to existing sanctions against other ICC judges for similar reasons.
Rubio in August called the ICC a "national security threat that has been an instrument of lawfare against the United States and our close ally Israel."