US, Israeli officials’ ‘threats’ against ICC promote 'culture of impunity': UN experts

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

GENEVA (AA) – A group of UN experts on Friday expressed "utter dismay" over statements made by US and Israeli officials “threatening to retaliate” against the International Criminal Court (ICC), saying such threats promote a "culture of impunity."

"At a time when the world should unite to end the terrible bloodshed in Gaza and seek justice for those unlawfully killed, injured, traumatised, or taken hostage, since October 7, it is distressing to see State officials threatening to retaliate against a Court for pursuing international justice," the experts said in a statement.

"It is shocking to see countries that consider themselves champions of the rule of law trying to intimidate an independent and impartial international tribunal to thwart accountability," they added.

The experts underlined that threats of retaliatory action “violate human rights norms against attacks on justice personnel and exceed the accepted limits of freedom of expression.”

They urged states to respect the court’s independence as a judicial institution and protect the independence and impartiality of those who work within the court.

Last week, the Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) denounced statements that "threaten to retaliate against the Court or against Court personnel" for actions taken by the prosecutor.

The OTP reminded all individuals that “threats of retaliation may amount to an offense against the administration of justice under Article 70 of the Rome Statute.”

Recently, authorities in the US and Israel have made statements concerning the ICC, characterizing the prosecutor’s potential actions as "lawless," "disgraceful," and any possible warrants as "an outrageous assault" and "an abomination."