The US on Thursday placed sanctions on four judges at the International Criminal Court because of their efforts to investigate or arrest American and Israeli citizens.
The unprecedented move comes as retaliation over the ICC'S investigation into alleged war crimes by US troops in Afghanistan and the court's arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant.
The ICC condemned the move as a "clear attempt to undermine the independence of an international judicial institution ... [that] provides justice and hope to millions of victims of unimaginable atrocities".
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked US President Donald Trump and his top diplomat on Friday for the move.
"Thank you President Trump and Secretary of State (Marco) Rubio for imposing sanctions against the politicised judges of the ICC," Mr Netanyahu wrote on social media. "You have justly stood up for the right of Israel, the United States and all democracies to defend themselves against savage terror."
The four judges are: Solomy Balungi Bossa of Uganda, Luz del Carmen Ibanez Carranza of Peru, Reine Adelaide Sophie Alapini Gansou of Benin, and Beti Hohler of Slovenia.
Mr Bossa and and Ms Ibanez Carranza ruled to authorise the ICC’s investigation against US personnel in Afghanistan.
Ms Alapini Gansou and Ms Hohler ruled to authorise the ICC’s issuance of arrest warrants against Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gallant.
"As ICC judges, these four individuals have actively engaged in the ICC’s illegitimate and baseless actions targeting America or our close ally, Israel," US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement. "The ICC is politicised and falsely claims unfettered discretion to investigate, charge, and prosecute nationals of the United States and our allies."
In February, The Hague-based court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, was placed on Washington’s list of “Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons", barring him from doing business with Americans and placing restrictions on his entry into the US.
Mr Khan stepped aside last month pending an investigation into alleged sexual misconduct.
Neither the US nor Israel recognises the ICC, which issued an arrest warrant for Mr Netanyahu for alleged war crimes over his military response in Gaza after the Hamas-led attack against Israel in October 2023. Israel strongly denies the allegations.
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EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
It's up to you to go green
Nils El Accad, chief executive and owner of Organic Foods and Café, says going green is about “lifestyle and attitude” rather than a “money change”; people need to plan ahead to fill water bottles in advance and take their own bags to the supermarket, he says.
“People always want someone else to do the work; it doesn’t work like that,” he adds. “The first step: you have to consciously make that decision and change.”
When he gets a takeaway, says Mr El Accad, he takes his own glass jars instead of accepting disposable aluminium containers, paper napkins and plastic tubs, cutlery and bags from restaurants.
He also plants his own crops and herbs at home and at the Sheikh Zayed store, from basil and rosemary to beans, squashes and papayas. “If you’re going to water anything, better it be tomatoes and cucumbers, something edible, than grass,” he says.
“All this throwaway plastic - cups, bottles, forks - has to go first,” says Mr El Accad, who has banned all disposable straws, whether plastic or even paper, from the café chain.
One of the latest changes he has implemented at his stores is to offer refills of liquid laundry detergent, to save plastic. The two brands Organic Foods stocks, Organic Larder and Sonnett, are both “triple-certified - you could eat the product”.
The Organic Larder detergent will soon be delivered in 200-litre metal oil drums before being decanted into 20-litre containers in-store.
Customers can refill their bottles at least 30 times before they start to degrade, he says. Organic Larder costs Dh35.75 for one litre and Dh62 for 2.75 litres and refills will cost 15 to 20 per cent less, Mr El Accad says.
But while there are savings to be had, going green tends to come with upfront costs and extra work and planning. Are we ready to refill bottles rather than throw them away? “You have to change,” says Mr El Accad. “I can only make it available.”
Karwaan
Producer: Ronnie Screwvala
Director: Akarsh Khurana
Starring: Irrfan Khan, Dulquer Salmaan, Mithila Palkar
Rating: 4/5
Fanney Khan
Producer: T-Series, Anil Kapoor Productions, ROMP, Prerna Arora
Director: Atul Manjrekar
Cast: Anil Kapoor, Aishwarya Rai, Rajkummar Rao, Pihu Sand
Rating: 2/5
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Director: Trevor Nunn
Starring: Judi Dench, Sophie Cookson, Tereza Srbova
Rating: 3/5 stars
F1 line ups in 2018
Mercedes-GP Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas; Ferrari Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen; Red Bull Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen; Force India Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez; Renault Nico Hülkenberg and Carlos Sainz Jr; Williams Lance Stroll and Felipe Massa / Robert Kubica / Paul di Resta; McLaren Fernando Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne; Toro Rosso TBA; Haas F1 Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen; Sauber TBA
