DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - The United States on Thursday sanctioned two judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC), accusing them of engaging in "politicized" and "illegitimate" actions against Israel and asserting that the court has no jurisdiction over US or Israeli nationals.

The US Department of State said it designated ICC judges Gocha Lordkipanidze of Georgia and Erdenebalsuren Damdin of Mongolia under Executive Order 14203, which authorizes sanctions against the court.

The department said the judges were directly involved in efforts to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute Israeli nationals without Israel’s consent, including voting in favor of an ICC ruling that rejected Israel’s appeal seeking to end a probe into alleged Israeli war crimes in Gaza on December 15.

“The ICC has continued to engage in politicized actions targeting Israel, which set a dangerous precedent for all nations,” the State Department said in a statement. It added that Washington would not tolerate what it called abuses of power that violate the sovereignty of the United States and Israel.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio echoed that position in a separate statement on the X platform, saying the Trump administration was imposing sanctions on the two judges to counter what he described as the ICC’s “lawfare, abuse of power, and blatant disregard” for US and Israeli sovereignty.

The international court, for its part, criticized the imposition of sanctions as “a flagrant attack against the independence of an impartial judicial institution.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed the American move, praising Rubio and US President Donald Trump for confronting "the scourge of lawfare, which poses a serious threat to both our nations."

The State Department reiterated that neither the United States nor Israel is a party to the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the ICC, and therefore reject the court’s jurisdiction.

The administration said it would continue to impose “significant and tangible consequences” in response to what it views as ICC overreach.

The ICC has previously defended its authority to pursue investigations related to alleged international crimes, including in the Palestinian territories, a position rejected by Israel and the United States.