The Trump administration on Wednesday announced sanctions against the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court(ICC), Fatou Bensouda over investigation of US soldiers for alleged war crimes in Afghanistan.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/international-criminal-courts-decision-on-us-troops-illegitimate-and-unjustified-pompeo-284588">Also Read:&nbsp;ICC's decision on US troops illegitimate and unjustified, says&nbsp;Pompeo</a>

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said, "Today we take the next step, because the ICC continues to target Americans, sadly."

US sanctions were also initiated against Phakiso Mochochoko, director of the ICC's Jurisdiction, Complementary and Cooperation Division. Pompeo said Mochochoko was sanctioned for "having materially assisted prosecutor Bensouda".

The US secretary of state added that broader sanctions could be applied to those helping Mochochoko and Bensouda. The ICC in a statement condemned the move, saying: "The International Criminal Court condemns the economic sanctions imposed by the US earlier today on the court's prosecutor and a member of her office."

"These coercive acts, directed at an international judicial institution and its civil servants, are unprecedented and constitute serious attacks against the court, the Rome Statute system of international criminal justice, and the rule of law more generally," it added.

In June, US President Donald Trump had allowed sanctions on the tribunal for probing and prosecuting US troops. Pompeo had called the ICC a "kangaroo court", while US Attorney General Bill Barr had said that ICC has become "little more than a political tool employed by unaccountable international elites."

China, Russia, the United States, Israel and Syria including other countries are not members of the ICC which prosecutes war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. Trump under his executive powers had earlier cleared three US military members over war crimes. 
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The Trump administration on Wednesday announced sanctions against the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court(ICC), Fatou Bensouda over investigation of US soldiers for alleged war crimes in Afghanistan.

The Trump administration on Wednesday announced sanctions against the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court(ICC), Fatou Bensouda over investigation of US soldiers for alleged war crimes in Afghanistan. Also Read: ICC's decision on US troops illegitimate and unjustified, says Pompeo US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said, "Today we take the next step, because the ICC continues to target Americans, sadly." US sanctions were also initiated against Phakiso Mochochoko, director of the ICC's Jurisdiction, Complementary and Cooperation Division. Pompeo said Mochochoko was sanctioned for "having materially assisted prosecutor Bensouda". The US secretary of state added that broader sanctions could be applied to those helping Mochochoko and Bensouda. The ICC in a statement condemned the move, saying: "The International Criminal Court condemns the economic sanctions imposed by the US earlier today on the court's prosecutor and a member of her office." "These coercive acts, directed at an international judicial institution and its civil servants, are unprecedented and constitute serious attacks against the court, the Rome Statute system of international criminal justice, and the rule of law more generally," it added. In June, US President Donald Trump had allowed sanctions on the tribunal for probing and prosecuting US troops. Pompeo had called the ICC a "kangaroo court", while US Attorney General Bill Barr had said that ICC has become "little more than a political tool employed by unaccountable international elites." China, Russia, the United States, Israel and Syria including other countries are not members of the ICC which prosecutes war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. Trump under his executive powers had earlier cleared three US military members over war crimes.

US sanctions International Criminal Court prosecutor Fatou Bensouda over investigation of US soldiers in alleged war crimes in Afghanistan

The people responsible for the atrocities that forced hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims to flee from Myanmar's Rakhine state will be held to account, an International Criminal Court official said on Monday.

Following a visit to&nbsp;Bangladesh&nbsp;refugee camps, the ICC's Phakiso Mochochoko said the fact that Myanmar is not a signatory to the Hague-based international court "will not in any way be a hindrance" to an investigation.

"It may present a little bit of challenge for us in terms of investigation, but we have faced a situation like this in the past and we've been able to deal with them," the court's director of jurisdiction told reporters in the capital Dhaka.

Mochochoko made the comments after leading a delegation to&nbsp;Bangladesh's southeastern Cox's Bazar district, home to around one million Rohingya refugees.

The delegation, however, clarified that its visit to the camps was not a part of any investigation but to collect insights for an ongoing assessment of the office of prosecutor Fatou Bensouda whether to warrant a full investigation.

"A preliminary examination is not an investigation, but an assessment of the Rome Statute criteria to decide whether an investigation into the situation at hand is warranted," he said.

"Therefore during this mission, as is standard practice of the Office, the delegation did not collect evidence or perform any other investigative activities," Mochochoko said.

About 740,000 Rohingya have fled Rakhine state to&nbsp;Bangladesh&nbsp;since August 2017 following a brutal military crackdown that UN officials described as "ethnic cleansing". Thousands more arrived in previous years following earlier bouts of anti-Rohingya violence.

Mochochoko said the preliminary probe would be "all about individual responsibility".

"The people who are responsible, the people who gave instruction, the people who commanded, the people who did all the other things and facilitated the commission of this crime," he said.

"The prosecutor is bound or intended to ensure that accountability for the suffering of the Rohingya people is met and those who are responsible for the atrocity that happened there are brought to account," he added.

The visit came after judges last year ruled that even though Myanmar has not signed up to the Hague-based ICC, the court still has jurisdiction over crimes against the Rohingya because&nbsp;Bangladesh&nbsp;is a member.

Last month Organisation of Islamic Cooperation -- of which&nbsp;Bangladesh&nbsp;is a member -- in a meeting in Abu Dhabi unanimously adopted a resolution to move at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for establishing the legal rights of the Rohingya and addressing the question of accountability and justice, Dhaka's foreign ministry said.

Myanmar's army has denied nearly all wrongdoing, insisting its campaign was justified to root out Rohingya insurgents who staged deadly raids on border posts in August 2017.

The people responsible for the atrocities that forced hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims to flee from Myanmar's Rakhine state will be held to account, an International Criminal Court official said on Monday.

The people responsible for the atrocities that forced hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims to flee from Myanmar's Rakhine state will be held to account, an International Criminal Court official said on Monday. Following a visit to Bangladesh refugee camps, the ICC's Phakiso Mochochoko said the fact that Myanmar is not a signatory to the Hague-based international court "will not in any way be a hindrance" to an investigation. "It may present a little bit of challenge for us in terms of investigation, but we have faced a situation like this in the past and we've been able to deal with them," the court's director of jurisdiction told reporters in the capital Dhaka. Mochochoko made the comments after leading a delegation to Bangladesh's southeastern Cox's Bazar district, home to around one million Rohingya refugees. The delegation, however, clarified that its visit to the camps was not a part of any investigation but to collect insights for an ongoing assessment of the office of prosecutor Fatou Bensouda whether to warrant a full investigation. "A preliminary examination is not an investigation, but an assessment of the Rome Statute criteria to decide whether an investigation into the situation at hand is warranted," he said. "Therefore during this mission, as is standard practice of the Office, the delegation did not collect evidence or perform any other investigative activities," Mochochoko said. About 740,000 Rohingya have fled Rakhine state to Bangladesh since August 2017 following a brutal military crackdown that UN officials described as "ethnic cleansing". Thousands more arrived in previous years following earlier bouts of anti-Rohingya violence. Mochochoko said the preliminary probe would be "all about individual responsibility". "The people who are responsible, the people who gave instruction, the people who commanded, the people who did all the other things and facilitated the commission of this crime," he said. "The prosecutor is bound or intended to ensure that accountability for the suffering of the Rohingya people is met and those who are responsible for the atrocity that happened there are brought to account," he added. The visit came after judges last year ruled that even though Myanmar has not signed up to the Hague-based ICC, the court still has jurisdiction over crimes against the Rohingya because Bangladesh is a member. Last month Organisation of Islamic Cooperation -- of which Bangladesh is a member -- in a meeting in Abu Dhabi unanimously adopted a resolution to move at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for establishing the legal rights of the Rohingya and addressing the question of accountability and justice, Dhaka's foreign ministry said. Myanmar's army has denied nearly all wrongdoing, insisting its campaign was justified to root out Rohingya insurgents who staged deadly raids on border posts in August 2017.

Individuals responsible for Rohingya atrocities will face justice: International Criminal Court

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US sanctions International Criminal Court prosecutor Fatou Bensouda over investigation of US soldiers in alleged war crimes in Afghanistan

Individuals responsible for Rohingya atrocities will face justice: International Criminal Court