ICC says enough grounds to investigate military, Boko Haram for war crimes

 

The International Criminal Court (ICC) says it has concluded plans to investigate the Nigerian military and the Boko Haram insurgents for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The ICC said it has found reasonable basis to believe that members of the Nigerian security forces and the insurgents have committed murder, rape, torture, and cruel treatment, including enforced disappearance and hostage-taking.

The ICC Prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, disclosed on Friday, that preliminary investigations also indicate that the military equally carried out the forcible transfer of population; outrages upon personal dignity; intentionally directing attacks against the civilian population and individual civilians not taking direct part in hostilities.

The Prosecutor’s Office has investigated war crimes in multiple jurisdictions since 2003, including in Uganda; the Democratic Republic of the Congo; Darfur, Sudan; the Central African Republic Kenya; Libya; Côte d’Ivoire; Mali; Georgia, Burundi Bangladesh/Myanmar and Afghanistan.

Bensouda in a statement also alleged that the troops engaged in unlawful imprisonment; conscripting and enlisting children under the age of 15 years into the armed forces and using them to participate actively in hostilities; persecution on gender and political grounds; and other inhumane acts.

The statement titled, ‘Statement of the Prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, on the conclusion of the preliminary examination of the situation in Nigeria,’ followed the conclusion of the preliminary examination of the situation in Nigeria, which commenced since 2010.

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The prosecutor explained that the statutory criteria for opening an investigation into the security situation had been met, paving the way for a full-blown probe of the allegations against the members of the security forces engaged in counter-insurgency operations in the North-East.

This is happening five days after Amnesty International said that the military and the insurgents have killed many aged citizens at disproportionate levels due to their inability to flee attacks.

In a 67-page report titled ‘My heart is in pain: Older people’s experience of conflict, displacement, and detention in North-East Nigeria’, the rights group disclosed that older people were killed both by the terrorist group and the military.

The office of the ICC prosecutor had announced its findings on crimes in Nigeria since 2013 and about two months ago, promised to conduct a preliminary investigation into the conduct of security operatives in the country.

Bensouda disclosed that the duration of the preliminary examination, open since 2010, was due to the priority given by her Office in supporting the Nigerian authorities in investigating and prosecuting the crimes domestically.

She said, “While my Office recognises that the vast majority of criminality within the situation is attributable to non-state actors, we have also found a reasonable basis to believe that members of the Nigerian Security Forces have committed the following acts constituting crimes against humanity and war crimes: murder, rape, torture, and cruel treatment; enforced disappearance; forcible transfer of population; outrages upon personal dignity; intentionally directing attacks against the civilian population as such and against individual civilians not taking direct part in hostilities; unlawful imprisonment; conscripting and enlisting children under the age of 15 years into armed forces and using them to participate actively in hostilities; persecution on gender and political grounds; and other inhumane acts.”

The prosecutor noted that her office had concluded that there was a reasonable basis to believe that members of Boko Haram and its splinter groups similarly committed various war crimes including sexual slavery, forced pregnancy and forced marriage; enslavement; torture; cruel treatment; outrages upon personal dignity; taking of hostages; intentionally directing attacks against the civilian population or individual civilians not taking direct part in hostilities.

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She further accused the sect of intentionally directing attacks against personnel, installations, material, units or vehicles involved in humanitarian assistance; intentionally directing attacks against buildings dedicated to education and places of worship and similar institutions; conscripting and enlisting children under the age of 15 years into armed groups and using them to participate actively in hostilities; persecution on gender and religious grounds; and other inhumane acts.

Bensouda stated that the allegations are sufficiently grave to warrant investigation by her Office, both in quantitative and qualitative terms, noting that she would provide further details in the forthcoming annual Report on Preliminary Examination Activities.

“Moving forward, the next step will be to request authorisation from the Judges of the Pre-Trial Chamber of the Court to open investigations,” she said.

Reacting, Netsanet Belay, Amnesty International’s Director of Research and Advocacy, said, “After years of calling on the ICC Prosecutor to open a full investigation, this is the first meaningful step towards justice that we have seen for victims of atrocious crimes committed by all parties to the conflict in North-East Nigeria.

“This is an important milestone, but it must be followed with immediate action to open a full investigation. For the victims of war crimes and potential crimes against humanity to see justice, it’s crucial that the prosecutor swiftly begin an effective and well-resourced investigation.”