The importance of digital independence
US-sanctioned Judge Beti Hohler has called on European states to increase their resistance to US sanctions. "It is important to fight back," Hohler told the weekly newspaper "Die Zeit". If states unequivocally condemn sanctions, it carries weight. In addition, states should make it clear to service providers in their countries "that the EU does not recognise the effect of these sanctions outside the USA.
Many digital services have been terminated for Hohler.
For example, her Apple ID was shut down a few months after the sanction.
Their accounts with US providers such as Amazon and Airbnb have also been suspended or terminated.
“That's the grueling thing: You don't get forewarned. You don't have time to get organized, "Hohler said. "What still works today may not work tomorrow."
Not having a credit card is often very obstructive, especially online,” Hohler said. Many would only accept credit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay or Paypal. They cannot use these payment methods because they are offered by US companies. Booking hotels is very difficult without a credit card, renting a car is impossible.
The 44-year-old has been affected by US sanctions for almost a year. She was part of the chamber that issued the arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Joaw Galant. Hohler was one of the first four judges to put the Trump administration on the Ofac sanctions list in June 2025. This was followed by further cases. A total of eleven employees at the ICC are sanctioned by the US, eight of them judges.
Holler's life has been fundamentally changed by the sanctions. “A European bank that I've been a customer of for decades has closed my account with immediate effect,” she told Die Zeit. Your credit cards were terminated within 24 hours of the sanctions being lifted. European banks often end business relationships with people who are on sanction lists because they themselves fear sanctions.
"As a European citizen, I am very concerned about this` overcompliance '," says Hohler. “It shows how unprotected we are.”
zeit.de/2026/18/beti-hohler-is…
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Beti Hohler: Erst sperrten sie ihre Kreditkarte. Dann Amazon, Airbnb und den Rest
Als Richterin am Internationalen Strafgerichtshof verärgerte Beti Hohler den US-Präsidenten. Seine Reaktion riegelte ihr Leben ab. Hier erzählt sie, wie sie weitermacht.Johanna Jürgens (DIE ZEIT)
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