The U.S. is placing sanctions on International Criminal Court (ICC) Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda over the continued investigations of U.S. persons, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced on Wednesday.

Also added to the sanctions list is Phakiso Mochochoko, the head of the ICC’s jurisdiction division.

This year, the Trump administration imposed economic sanctions on ICC employees involved in investigating U.S. troops for potential war crimes in Afghanistan.

The ICC was established in 2002 by the international community – with the U.S. declining to join – to prosecute war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity in places where perpetrators might not otherwise face justice.

Pompeo said that since the U.S. was not part of the ICC, the investigations were “illegitimate.” (NAN)