Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger Announce Withdrawal From ICC

Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger have declared their immediate withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC), describing the tribunal as an “instrument of neo-colonialist repression.”

In a joint statement on Sunday, the military-led governments said they would no longer recognise the authority of the Hague-based court, arguing that it has failed to prosecute “proven war crimes, crimes against humanity, crimes of genocide, and crimes of aggression.”

The three Sahel states added that they plan to establish “indigenous mechanisms for the consolidation of peace and justice” to replace the court’s role in their territories. They also accused the ICC of bias against less privileged nations, echoing similar criticism voiced in the past by Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who has accused the court of unfairly targeting African countries.

Since its establishment in 2002, the ICC has opened 33 cases, all but one involving Africa. A country’s withdrawal becomes effective one year after official notification to the United Nations. The ICC has not yet responded to the announcement.

Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger are currently ruled by military juntas following coups between 2020 and 2023. Together, they form the Confederation of Sahel States and have also faced allegations of abuses against civilians amid ongoing conflicts with jihadist groups linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.

The three nations earlier this year jointly withdrew from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), rejecting pressure from the regional bloc to return to civilian rule.

All three have grown increasingly aligned with Russia in recent years, after distancing themselves from former colonial power France and other Western partners. In 2023, the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin over alleged war crimes in Ukraine — a decision that further strained the court’s relations with Moscow and its allies.