The European Union has awarded the International Criminal Court (ICC) its top human rights award, two weeks after US President Donald Trump vowed to dismantle the court through new sanctions. Thursday’s Sakharov Prize is the second international recognition for the war crimes tribunal this month, with former ICC Judge Navi Pillay awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her work to promote peace and international law. The ICC thanked the European Parliament for the honour “at a time when the Court and its officials face unprecedented challenges”.
The Hague-based ICC has long been a target of Trump, whose campaign against it has escalated since the court announced in 2024 arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant. The Trump administration has promised to dismantle the court “brick by brick”, recently announcing sanctions aimed at crippling its day-to-day operations. The ICC tries individuals for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.
Washington has also sanctioned ICC judges and prosecutors, as well as a UN special rapporteur focusing on the occupied Palestinian territories and Palestinian rights groups that have provided evidence to the court. The EU has already thrown its support behind the ICC in the face of the US sanctions, which are due to come into force in six months, and has said it is “ready to take any necessary measures” to make sure the court can continue functioning. Brussels is hoping to use the delay before the sanctions are applied to try to talk the US down, but according to EU officials is also eyeing implementing a “blocking statute” to shield the ICC from Washington.
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