U.S.-sanctioned ICC head warns against ‘demise of international rule of law’

Tomoko Akane, president of the International Criminal Court, delivers a speech during a news conference at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo in June 2024. | AFP-JIJI

AFP-JIJI

Aug 22, 2026

International Criminal Court President Tomoko Akane of Japan warned Friday against “the demise of international rule of law” after the United States targeted her with sanctions.

Washington sanctioned Akane and trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye of Senegal on Tuesday as part of the Trump administration’s campaign against what it calls a “corrupt and fatally politicized” body.

“The sanction against me this time was something I had anticipated to an extent, so I’m not surprised,” Akane said in a statement released on X by her publisher, Bungei Shunju.

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