In accordance with ICC employees, sanctions imposed by the Trump administration have rendered it virtually impossible for the tribunal to carry out elementary functions, not to mention pursue justice against war crimes victims,
The far-reaching sanctions ordered by US President Donald Trump on the International Criminal Court (ICC) and its personnel — specifically aimed at the body’s chief prosecutor Karim Khan — have been increasingly affecting the tribunal’s operations, ICC asserts.
The sanctions have significantly hindered the tribunal from carrying out simple tasks, much less pursuing justice for war crimes victims, the staffers said.
In February, the court was sanctioned by the Trump administration, as a response to the ICC’s November arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant.
In his executive order, Trump specifically targeted Khan as a sanctioned person, denying him entry to the US, along with other non-US staff.
As per ICC staff, Kahn has now lost access to his Microsoft email account, and his bank accounts in his native land of the United Kingdom have been frozen.
Trump’s sanctions also put any individual, institution or business at risk of fines and jail time if they offer Khan “financial, material, or technological support”, while US staffers have been warned that they can be arrested if they go home to visit their relatives.
Investigations on hold due to Khan’s own scandal
The sanctions are holding back work on a wide range of investigations, including the one against Israel’s leaders.
The ICC, for instance, had been probing the atrocities in Sudan and already had issued arrest warrants for former Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir on genocide charges.
The investigation, however, has come to a standstill ever since the case’s prosecutor Eric Iverson sued the Trump administration, in an attempt to pursue protection from the sanctions.
Iverson’s attorney Allison Miller explained that her client “cannot do, what I would describe as, basic lawyer functions.”
Three lawsuits are currently pending by US court staff and consultants against the Trump administration, claiming the sanctions violate their freedom of expression.
The new attack from the Trump administration comes at a time when the court was already embroiled in a scandal regarding allegations of sexual abuse against Khan.
Last year, just weeks before Khan announced he was requesting arrest warrants for the Israeli officials, two court staff reported the British barrister had coerced a junior member of ICC staff into nonconsensual sexual acts.
A recent report by the Wall Street Journal revealed an alleged pattern of inappropriate touching, harassment and forced intercourse perpetrated by Khan against his accuser.
The aide, a Malaysian lawyer in her 30s, claimed Khan also coerced her into sexual intercourse against her will during assignments in New York, Colombia, Congo, Chad and Paris, and at his home in the Hague, as per her testimony seen by the US-based publication.
Khan’s lawyers have stated all claims he engaged in sexual violence or misconduct are “categorically untrue”.
Since the allegations, Khan has also been accused of punishing employees who defended the woman and demoting some individuals he believed were criticizing him.
UN’s Office of Internal Oversight Services report on Khan’s alleged misbehavior is due out in the coming months, according to reports.