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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
Patrick Wintour in New York

Alarm at UN over sanctions threatened by US on international criminal court

A man speaks in a large, ornate hall.
South Africa's foreign minister, Ronald Lamola, addresses the UN general assembly in New York on 24 September 2026. Photograph: Frank Franklin II/AP

The US threat to impose sanctions on the international criminal court (ICC) as an institution, not just its leading judges, could fundamentally disrupt its operation and needed to be resisted, a coalition of countries to defend international law heard at the United Nations on Friday.

Ronald Lamola, South Africa’s foreign minister, issued the warning at an event during the UN general assembly called to protect the system of international law from a growing array of threats, including open flouting of its tenets and rulings by Israel.

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