The deputy prosecutor of the international criminal court has said that new US sanctions are already beginning to take effect on its staff but insisted they have not hindered the court’s work.

US secretary of state Marco Rubio announced the sanctions earlier this month , accusing the ICC – a frequent Trump administration target – of being a “rogue court” and declaring: “Either the ICC will end its threats, or we will end the ICC.”

Nazhat Shameem Khan – who is co-running the office pending the appointment of a new chief prosecutor – said the court was so far continuing its work.

She said that the Gaza war investigation and others had made “significant progress” since war crimes arrest warrants were issued in November 2024 for Benjamin Netanyahu and the former Israeli defence minister, Yoav Galant. Further applications from the prosecutor were being kept secret by order of the court, she said.

The ICC issued a war crimes arrest warrant for the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.…