Overview
- U.S. District Judge Richard Leon in Washington temporarily blocked the sanctions on Thursday, saying they likely targeted disfavored speech protected by the Constitution.
- The penalties were imposed in May–July 2025 under a Trump executive order aimed at people seen as backing International Criminal Court cases against U.S. or Israeli officials, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio citing her pressure on the ICC.
- The judge found that Albanese can invoke U.S. free-speech rights because she has substantial ties to the country, including a home in Washington and a daughter who is a U.S. citizen.
- Before the injunction, the measures kept her from entering the United States and using U.S. banking, and her husband, Massimiliano Calì, sued in February on behalf of the family.
- The order is temporary while the case proceeds and could shape how the U.S. uses extraterritorial sanctions linked to ICC advocacy, as Europe considers countermeasures such as an EU blocking statute.