International Criminal Court (ICC) President Tomoko Akane told the UN General Assembly on Monday that US sanctions against the court are an attempt to obstruct the course of justice.

In a virtual address, she said the measures, imposed on October 9 — the same day the Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the Peace Prize to former ICC judge Navi Pillay — target 13 independent judges and prosecutors, including herself, and strike at “the heart of the sovereign equality of states.”