The US Secretary of State announced an embargo against two International Criminal Court officials who had investigated accusations of the US military's war crimes.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo today announced the imposition of sanctions against the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor Fatou Bensouda for "investigating the suspicion of war crimes by US forces in Afghanistan".

"We take the next step today, as the ICC continues to target US citizens," Pompeo said, adding that many ICC officials have been denied visas to enter the United States due to their involvement in the investigation.

The move comes nearly three months after US President Donald Trump signed a decree authorizing individuals "directly involved in all ICC efforts to investigate, arrest, detain or prosecute US officials and

Attorney General William Barr said "the US government has reason to doubt the integrity of the ICC", and expressed concern that powers like Russia are manipulating the ICC to pursue their own agendas.

The ICC ordered an investigation of war crimes committed by US and allied forces in Afghanistan, as well as charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity by the Taliban rebels.

The US is not a member of the ICC, and the Trump administration official has long denied the court's authority, while taking steps to prevent investigations such as revoking prosecutor Bensouda's visa last year.

ICC was born in 2002 under a United Nations treaty and ratified by 123 countries, specializing in investigating suspects to bring justice to those suffering genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.

The United States has been a critic of the ICC since its inception, the Trump administration official has long rejected the court's authority and took steps to prevent investigations such as revoking prosecutor Bensouda's visa in the year.