New York, N.Y. (July 17, 2026) — American Jewish World Service (AJWS) condemns the U.S. Department of State’s targeted attack on the International Criminal Court and its threats to states and actors that honor the Court’s vision of global justice. As the leading Jewish organization fighting to advance human rights outside of the U.S., we believe an objective legal mechanism is essential to defending human rights among communities routinely marginalized by authoritarian governments, corporations, and the tyranny of the majority.
The State Department’s threats, as articulated by Secretary of State Marco Rubio on July 13, represent another step in the administration’s dangerous retreat from rule of law. The U.S. has never been a party to the Court, so Secretary Rubio’s ultimatum interferes with the decisions of other nations, undermining the Court’s processes and its imperative to center accountability human rights as a key to international diplomacy.
The International Criminal Court exists to ensure that those who perpetrate atrocities, including genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes, are held accountable. Secretary Rubio’s efforts to subvert the Court’s mission serve to further erode U.S. credibility on international justice and, most consequentially, weaken institutional protections for the grassroots human rights activists AJWS supports.
“Together, the work of our partners and the lessons of Jewish history compel us to support institutions that seek justice for those oppressed by actors that violate the inherent dignity of every human being,” said Tawanda Mutasah, AJWS President and CEO. “This crusade against the Court is yet another blatant attempt by this administration to weaken the broader international framework and uphold the Universal Declaration on Human Rights.”
Guided by the Jewish values of justice and dignity, AJWS sees this harmful campaign as an affront to historical memory and the international system the U.S. helped establish after 1945. AJWS has learned from its grantees who rely on international justice and accountability just how critical the Court is.
“This attack on the court is an insult to victims and survivors of atrocities,” said Matthew Smith, founder and CEO of Fortify Rights, a human rights group that conducts work in Myanmar. “As someone challenging the effects of the administration’s ICC sanctions in federal court, I know firsthand that this campaign also threatens the fundamental freedoms of Americans working to advance accountability.”
AJWS calls on the State Department to abandon this campaign and efforts to intimidate states and actors/institutions in the cause of empowering human rights abusers. The U.S. should champion accountability for global atrocities and adherence to justice and the rule of law.
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