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Middle East Eye
an hour ago
- Middle East Eye
The four ICC judges sanctioned by the US for Palestine and Afghanistan work
The US State Department announced sanctions on Thursday against four judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC), targeting them over investigations involving the United States and its ally Israel. The move follows the designation of ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan in February, under an executive order issued by US President Donald Trump shortly after he was reinaugurated. The governments of the Netherlands, Belgium and Slovenia have been among the first to denounce the sanctions as an attempt to obstruct the work of the court. The sanctioned judges are: ICC Second Vice-President Reine Alapini-Gansou (Benin), Solomy Balungi Bossa (Uganda), Luz del Carmen Ibanez Carranza (Peru) and Beti Hohler (Slovenia). Alapini-Gansou and Hohler were targeted for their role as Pre-Trial judges in issuing arrest warrants in November 2024 for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant. The charges involve alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Gaza. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters The Pre-Trial chamber that issued the warrants also included French Judge Nicolas Guillou, who was not subject to US sanctions. Judges Bossa and Ibanez Carranza were sanctioned for their participation in a 2020 ICC appeals chamber decision that allowed an investigation into crimes committed in Afghanistan since 2003. The scope of that investigation included the Taliban, Afghan National Security Forces, and US military and CIA personnel. These sanctions were imposed despite a 2021 decision by the ICC prosecutor to deprioritise investigations involving US nationals. The ICC has a total of 18 judges who serve in different chambers, including the Pre-Trial, Trial and Appeals chambers. Judges are nominated by state parties to the Rome Statute, the ICC's founding treaty, and then elected by the Assembly of States Parties, the court's governing body. Judges must demonstrate high moral character, impartiality and integrity, meeting the qualifications required in their home countries for appointment to the highest judicial offices. Once elected, ICC judges serve a non-renewable nine-year term. Below are the profiles of the four judges sanctioned by the Trump administration on 5 June 2025. Judge Solomy Balungi Bossa (Uganda) Judge Solomy Balungi Bossa is a Ugandan jurist currently serving as a judge on the Appeals Chamber of the ICC, to which she was elected in 2017 and sworn in in March 2018. She has participated in appellate proceedings before the ICC concerning several landmark cases, including The Prosecutor v Bosco Ntaganda and The Prosecutor v Dominic Ongwen. According to her official profile, Judge Bossa joined the ICC after an extensive judicial career spanning national, regional and international legal bodies. She previously served on the United Nations Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals (2012-2018), the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights (2014-2018), and Uganda's Court of Appeal (2013-2018). Earlier, she held judicial roles at the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (2003-2013), the East African Court of Justice (2001-2006), and the High Court of Uganda (1997-2013). Before her judicial appointments, Bossa practised law privately between 1988 and 1997, and lectured at Uganda's Law Development Centre from 1980 to 1997. During that period, she was actively involved in human rights work, often representing disadvantaged women in court. She also played a central role in establishing and leading several NGOs focused on legal advocacy and support for individuals living with HIV and AIDS. Her professional commitments extended to legal institutions at both national and international levels. She was vice chairperson of the International Bar Association Human Rights Institute (1993-1999), led the Legal Aid Clinics at the Law Development Centre (1999-2001), and served as president of the Uganda Law Society (1993-1995). She also chaired the Uganda Law Council (1998-2003) and the National Steering Committee on Community Service (1997-2000). Judge Bossa is affiliated with several professional organisations, including the International Association of Women Judges and the African Centre for Democracy and Human Rights. She is also an honorary member of the International Commission of Jurists. Judge Bossa holds a Bachelor of Laws from Makerere University, a postgraduate diploma in legal practice from Uganda's Law Development Centre and a Master of Laws in public international law from the University of London. Judge Luz del Carmen Ibanez Carranza (Peru) Judge Luz del Carmen Ibanez Carranza, a Peruvian jurist, has served on the Appeals Chamber of the ICC since March 2018. Elected by the Assembly of States Parties in December 2017, she is the first Peruvian to hold a judgeship at the ICC. From 2021 to 2024, she served as first vice-president of the court, contributing to its administrative leadership alongside her judicial responsibilities. Prior to joining the ICC, Judge Ibanez Carranza held senior prosecutorial roles within Peru's national justice system, according to her official ICC profile. She served as a senior national prosecutor in the country's specialised system for addressing terrorism, grave human rights violations and crimes against humanity. In this capacity, she also acted as the coordinator of 17 prosecutorial offices responsible for such cases. During her tenure as a public prosecutor in her home country, Judge Ibanez Carranza implemented a range of victim-centred measures aimed at supporting reparations processes. These included efforts to search for missing persons, recover and identify remains from mass graves, and facilitate the return of those remains to victims' families. She also played a role in organising public ceremonies in which the Peruvian state issued official apologies and took part in operations to rescue children abducted by armed groups. Her work extended beyond the national context, as she was appointed on multiple occasions to represent Peru before international bodies. These included the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), and the Inter-American Committee against Terrorism (CICTE), among others. Judge Ibanez Carranza holds a doctorate and a master's degree in criminal law from Universidad Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, and degrees in law and political science from Universidad Nacional de Trujillo. She also spent over 20 years as a university lecturer, teaching criminal law, criminal procedure and human rights law. Judge Ibanez Carranza has participated in appellate proceedings for landmark cases, including The Prosecutor v. Bosco Ntaganda and The Prosecutor v. Dominic Ongwen. Judge Reine Alapini-Gansou (Benin) Judge Reine Alapini-Gansou, from Benin, is the second vice-president of the ICC and a member of Pre-Trial Chamber I. She was a member of the Pre-Trial Chamber that issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin in March. On 13 November, a court in Moscow ordered her arrest in absentia over what the court said was an 'illegal' arrest warrant issued for Putin. Alapini-Gansou began her term as an ICC judge on 11 March 2018. Before joining the ICC, Alapini-Gansou served as chair of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, Africa's primary human rights body (2009-2012), and as special rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders in Africa (2005-2009 and 2012-2017). In 2011, she was appointed as a judge at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, the world's oldest international court. Alapini-Gansou has served as a Pre-Trial judge in numerous cases, including those in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Libya, Mali, Myanmar, Bolivia and Belarus. Her educational background includes a joint postgraduate degree (DEA) from the Universities of Maastricht (Netherlands), Lome (Togo) and Bhutan and a university degree in common law from the Jean Moulin University Lyon 3 (France). She also has a master's in business law and judicial careers from the National University of Benin. Judge Beti Hohler (Slovenia) Judge Beti Hohler, from Slovenia, is a member of Pre-Trial Chamber I. She was appointed to the chamber in October, following a sudden request for leave by her predecessor, Romanian Judge Iulia Motoc, on health grounds. Hohler is also a member of Trial Chamber V at the ICC, currently presiding over The Prosecutor v Alfred Yekatom and Patrice-Edouard Ngaissona case. She began her term as an ICC judge on 11 March 2024. Prior to this, she served as a trial lawyer in the Office of the Prosecutor at the ICC. Before joining the ICC in 2015, Hohler was an adviser for the EU Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo. In February 2015, she wrote a legal and policy briefing commenting on Palestine's accession to the ICC. In her analysis, Hohler explained the legal consequences of Palestine's membership, how Israel may challenge the court and the extent of the court's jurisdiction over Israelis and non-Palestinians. She concluded that 'with Palestine's accession to the statute, the legal framework has changed and the parties to the conflict would be wise to accept and respect that'. Hohler began her career in Ljubljana, Slovenia, where she served at the Court of Appeals before working as a senior associate at a law firm. She regularly trains judges and advocates. Hohler is also co-founder of the Institute for International Legal and Advocacy Training in The Hague. According to her official profile, Hohler is the recipient of several awards, including the 2012 EU Common Security and Defence Policy Service Medal, awarded for her service in the Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo. She holds a Master of Laws from the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, and another one in international and European law from the University of Amsterdam.
Middle East Eye
2 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
US sanctions four ICC judges over Israel and Afghanistan investigations
The administration of US President Donald Trump on Thursday issued sanctions on four judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC) over investigations into the US and its ally Israel. The sanctions build on the designation of ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan in February, carried out under an executive order issued shortly after Trump assumed office. "This is an escalation in a series of attacks by the US government against this global judicial institution, which was created to end impunity for the worst crimes," said Meg Satterthwaite, the UN's special rapporteur on the independence of judges, speaking to Middle East Eye. "It is shocking to see a country that has for decades championed the rule of law using a tool usually reserved for corrupt or criminal actors against judges of this global judicial body." The sanctioned judges, all women, are: ICC Second Vice-President Reine Adelaide Sophie Alapini Gansou (Benin), Solomy Balungi Bossa (Uganda), Luz del Carmen Ibanez Carranza (Peru) and Beti Hohler (Slovenia). New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Gansou and Hohler have been sanctioned in connection with their decision as pre-trial judges to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant in November over charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Gaza. The US and Israel are not state parties to the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the ICC in The Hague in 2002. Both states have opposed the court's investigation into the situation in Palestine, launched by the ICC's previous prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, in 2021. 'It is shocking to see a country that has for decades championed the rule of law using a tool usually reserved for corrupt or criminal actors against judges of this global judicial body' - Meg Satterthwaite, UN rapporteur The court's jurisdiction was based on the accession of the state of Palestine to the Rome Statute in 2015. Accordingly, the court can investigate Israeli individuals for crimes committed in occupied Palestine, which includes the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. However, Israel and the US have challenged the court's jurisdiction, saying they do not recognise Palestine as a state, and that Israel is best placed to investigate itself under the principle of complementarity as set out in Article 17 of the Rome Statute. Trump's order of 6 February reiterated this view and described the arrest warrants as an abuse of power, an allegation refuted by the ICC. The ICC is the only permanent international court tasked with the prosecution of individuals for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. 'President Trump's sanctions on ICC judges aim to deter the ICC from seeking accountability amid grave crimes committed in Israel and Palestine and as Israeli atrocities mount in Gaza, including with US complicity,' Liz Evenson, international justice director at Human Rights Watch, told MEE. Under Netanyahu's government, Israel has faced accusations of war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. The US is the largest supplier of arms to Israel and has backed its offensive in Gaza since October 2023, triggering accusations of aiding and abetting alleged crimes. Israel's war on Gaza has killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, forcibly displaced most of the 2.1 million population and made the enclave largely uninhabitable. Obstruction of justice Experts who spoke with MEE in the aftermath of Trump's order have suggested that the ICC should bring charges of obstruction of justice against the US president and any individuals behind the sanctions, based on Article 70 of the Rome Statute. The article prohibits offences against the administration of justice, including: "Impeding, intimidating or corruptly influencing an official of the Court for the purpose of forcing or persuading the official not to perform, or to perform improperly, his or her duties; and retaliating against an official of the Court on account of duties performed by that or another official." UN rapporteur urges EU to use legal powers to protect ICC from Trump sanctions Read More » The ICC has jurisdiction over Article 70 offences, irrespective of the nationality or location of the accused individuals. The Slovenian foreign ministry reacted to the sanctioning of Hohler, saying it will support her in carrying out her mandate. It also said it would propose the activation of the EU Blocking Statute. The statute primarily focuses on shielding EU operators, such as the Netherlands-based ICC, from certain US sanctions considered to have extraterritorial reach, like those against Cuba and Iran. Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot has also said his government would ask the EU to activate the statute. "While this would be the first time the blocking statute is applied in defense of the ICC, Belgium believes it is essential to protect the Court's independence and its crucial role in delivering justice for the gravest crimes," he said on Friday. The pre-trial chamber that issued the Netanyahu and Gallant decision included Gansou and Hohler, as well as French national Nicolas Guillou. It remains unclear why Guillou has been excluded from the sanctions. Legal scholar Kevin Jon Heller, who is Khan's war crimes advisor, argued that the US has sanctioned individuals who are perceived to be nationals of weaker states. 'The US seems to have sanctioned only the judges who come from smaller and less powerful states,' Heller said. The two other judges, Bossa and Ibanez Carranza, have been sanctioned for being part of the 2020 appeals chamber that authorised the ICC's investigation into crimes committed in Afghanistan since 2003. This included actions by the Taliban, Afghan National Security Forces, and US military and CIA personnel. Heller pointed out that Canadian judge Kimberly Prost was part of the same panel as the Ugandan judge Bossa and the Peruvian judge Ibanez Carranza, but she has been excluded from sanctions. 'The US seems to have sanctioned only the judges who come from smaller and less powerful states' - Kevin Jon Heller, legal advisor to Karim Khan 'That supports the 'weak state' explanation, because Judge Prost (Canada) was part of the same AC and is still an ICC judge,' he wrote on X. In response to the ICC's decision to investigate crimes in Afghanistan, the previous Trump administration imposed sanctions on ICC officials, including then-prosecutor Fatou Bensouda, and revoked her US visa. But since 2021, the ICC has shifted its strategy under current prosecutor Khan, deprioritising investigations into alleged crimes by US forces - a move widely denounced by human rights groups. Khan stated that the focus would instead be on crimes committed by the Taliban and the Islamic State - Khorasan Province, citing resource constraints and the need to concentrate on those most responsible for the gravest crimes. In January 2025, Khan applied for arrest warrants for two Taliban leaders for the crime against humanity of persecution on the grounds of gender. No applications for arrest warrants for US nationals have been made by the prosecutor. What is the impact of sanctions? The sanctions will have a wide-ranging financial impact on the affected judges, particularly on any property in the US and any transactions involving US citizens. 'As a result of today's sanctions-related actions, all property and interests in property of the sanctioned persons described above that are in the United States or in possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to the Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC),' the State Department said. The three ICC judges who issued the historic Netanyahu arrest warrant Read More » 'Additionally, all individuals or entities that are owned, either directly or indirectly, individually or in the aggregate, 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked.' The ICC denounced the sanctions, saying they aim at hindering its efforts to bring justice to victims of atrocities worldwide. 'These measures are a clear attempt to undermine the independence of an international judicial institution which operates under the mandate from 125 States Parties from all corners of the globe,' a statement by the ICC read, saying the sanctions will affect all situations being investigated by the court beyond Palestine. 'These sanctions are not only directed at designated individuals, they also target all those who support the Court, including nationals and corporate entities of States Parties.' Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp said the Netherlands 'disapproves' of the sanctions and stands behind the court and its officials. However, he has yet to announce specific measures to protect the sanctioned officials. MEE has reached out to the Dutch and Slovenian foreign ministries for comment.
Middle East Eye
2 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
French woman files complaint against Israel over killing of grandchildren in Gaza
A grandmother has filed a complaint for murder and genocide against Israeli authorities, accusing them of responsibility for killing her two Palestinian-French grandchildren in Gaza. Israeli forces killed six-year-old Abderrahim Abudaher and nine-year-old Janna Abudaher in northern Gaza on 24 October 2023. Their maternal grandmother, Jacqueline Rivault - a French national living in France - filed the complaint on Friday in Paris alongside the Ligue des Droits de l'Homme (LDH). The filing, submitted to the crimes against humanity unit of the Paris judicial court, accuses Israeli authorities of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. This is the first complaint brought before the French courts based on the passive personality principle - that is, based on the victims' French nationality - to address the issue of responsibility for these crimes, the LDH said. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters This civil action complaint seeks the appointment of an investigating judge. The victims' French nationality could trigger the direct jurisdiction of the French courts and lead them to rule on these accusations of "genocide". "This complaint aims to contribute to preventing and prosecuting those responsible, whether soldiers or politicians, for the ongoing genocide in the Gaza Strip, which indiscriminately affects the entire civilian population of the enclave," the LDH said. According to the 43-page complaint, which has been shared with Middle East Eye, the "extreme violence" and "regular bombardments" by the Israeli army on Gaza after 7 October led the family to take refuge in a house in the northern Gaza Strip, between Fallujah and Beit Lahia. There, the house was targeted by "two F16 missiles fired by the Israeli army," one of which hit "through the roof and the second directly into the bedroom where the family was staying". First Gaza genocide cases against French nationals filed in Paris Read More » Abderrahim died "instantly" and Janna shortly after being transferred to the hospital, according to the complaint. Their younger brother, Omar, was seriously wounded but still lives in Gaza, as does his mother, Yasmine Z. The complaint accuses the Israeli authorities of genocide because the bombing is presented as part of a plan to "eliminate the Palestinian population and subject them to conditions of existence likely to bring about the destruction of their group". Though it is filed against unknown persons, it specifically names Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, members of the Israeli government and the Israeli army. The complaint notes that the intention to eradicate the Palestinian people was evident from the statements made by political and military leaders, in particular Netanyahu. The aim of the complaint, explained Rivault's lawyer Arie Alimi, is to ensure the arrest of those responsible. "Those who were involved, in one way or another, in acts that could be classified as crimes against humanity or genocide, must know that upon leaving Israel's borders, they can be arrested anywhere," he said. Rivault's only daughter, Yasmine, had gone to Gaza to do humanitarian work. It was there that she met her husband. Her mother said the French government "should have evacuated the French nationals living in the Gaza Strip". The 'weapon' of criminal law The LDH said The complaint is intended to have a political impact and is one of many efforts aimed at bringing "these crimes" to an end as soon as possible. Its president, Nathalie Tehio, qualified criminal law as 'a weapon that allows us to try to stop this infernal mechanism of genocide that we are witnessing." The LDH is part of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), which was among the first groups to to declare that Israel was committing genocide, followed by Amnesty International a year later and Human Rights Watch. In January 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) called on Israel to prevent any act of genocide. The Hind Rajab Foundation: Pursuing Israeli soldiers worldwide for Gaza war crimes Read More » Since then, a number of legal actions have been taken in connection with "genocide" accusations against Israel, for example in Switzerland, the Netherlands and Germany. In France, three complaints have been filed in recent months against French-Israeli nationals accused of genocide or complicity. Last December, the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), along with three Palestinian organisations, filed a complaint against French-Israeli soldier Yoel O. He is accused of posting a video on social media showing detained Palestinians in white jumpsuits, blindfolded and handcuffed - one of whom appears to show visible signs of torture. The man behind the camera can be heard insulting the detainees in French. No judicial investigation has been opened in France to date. On Friday, the French National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor's Office opened a judicial investigation into French-Israelis suspected of involvement in blocking humanitarian aid to Gaza between January and May 2024. The probe includes charges of complicity in genocide, incitement to genocide, and complicity in crimes against humanity, AFP reported, citing a source close to the case. The investigation follows a complaint filed in November 2024 by the French Jewish Union for Peace (UJFP) and a French-Palestinian victim. The complaint accuses individuals of organising and participating in actions to block humanitarian aid to Gaza - specifically by physically obstructing aid trucks at Israeli-controlled border crossings. The civil action names figures reportedly with French nationality from two pro-Israel groups, Israel is Forever and Tzav-9.
