The International Criminal Court (ICC) is now facing a growing list of challenges that threaten its very ability to function effectively.

The court faces pushback over arrest warrants for Israeli officials, sexual harassment allegations against the court’s chief prosecutor and a very empty docket.

Human Rights Watch has raised the alarm, urging ICC member states to step up their support in ensuring the court’s survival and credibility in the face of mounting pressure.

In a 24-page report, the rights group provided recommendations to ICC member countries aimed at ensuring the court has the backing, resources, and cooperation it needs to advance investigations and cases across its docket.

It said that the court has been under “extreme pressure” since ICC judges issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Gallant and Hamas’s Mohammed Deif. These include threats from US legislators who said they would impose sanctions on ICC officials and those cooperating with the court.

Liz Evenson, international justice director at Human Rights Watch stressed that the ICC warrants, whether against Vladimir Putin or Benjamin Netanyahu, send a critical message that no one is above the law.

“The ICC needs the support of its member countries to fulfill its ambitious global mandate of delivering justice for the most serious crimes.

“Member country support needs to be consistent over time and across situations to avoid double standards and uphold the court’s legitimacy for victims and affected communities.”
Liz Evenson

The Human Rights Watch statement was issued before the annual session of the ICC’s Assembly of States Parties in The Hague today.

The rights group urged that at the Assembly session, ICC member countries should publicly make a commitment to enforce the ICC warrants, regardless of whom they target, and condemn threats and attacks against the court, its officials, and its supporters including civil society organizations and human rights defenders.

Following the warrants against for Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, US Senator Lindsey Graham called for the US Senate and President Joe Biden to enact a bill passed by the House of Representatives on June 4, aimed at imposing sanctions against the court, its officials, and those supporting its work.

The Human Rights Watch asserted that any US sanctions would have wide-reaching consequences for global justice that go beyond the individuals targeted.

According to the group, sanctions may create apprehension and legal uncertainty for service providers, nongovernmental organizations, consultants, and lawyers who work with the ICC.

It added that sanctions are a tool to be used against those responsible for the most serious crimes, not against those promoting justice.

Beyond the threatened US sanctions, arrest warrants issued by Russia against the ICC Prosecutor and six of the court’s current and former judges in retaliation to the court’s March 2023 warrant against Russian President Vladimir Putin, remain pending, and a law criminalizing cooperation with the ICC remains in force in the country.

The group stressed that member countries should also commit during the session to take concrete steps to protect the court from all coercive measures. This includes adopting and implementing national and regional laws to minimize or eliminate the effects of sanctions.

Moreover, the rights group touched on sexual harassment allegations against the court’s Chief Prosecutor, Karim Khan

It said that on November 11, 2024, the Assembly President Päivi Kaukoranta of Finland, announced that she is seeking an external investigation into allegations of sexual harassment against the ICC prosecutor, after an initial inquiry by the court’s Independent Oversight Mechanism was closed.

Human Rights Watch suggested that the external investigation should have the authority to put in place necessary safeguards to protect its integrity, including considering whether the prosecutor should temporarily step away from his duties while the investigation is ongoing.

ICC To Open Annual Meeting

Meanwhile, the International Criminal Court’s member states will open their annual meeting today, Monday, December 2, 2024.

The annual session of the ICC’s Assembly of States Parties will take place in The Hague, Netherlands, from December 2 to 7, 2024.

The Assembly of States Parties, which represents the ICC’s 124 member countries, will convene its 23rd conference to elect committee members and approve the court’s budget against a backdrop of unfavorable headlines.

At the Assembly session, member countries will also determine the future of the review of the court’s performance by independent experts, which produced nearly 400 recommendations for change, in 2020.