N’Djamena, Chad — The Chadian government has formally notified the United Nations of its decision to withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC), becoming the fifth nation to initiate exit proceedings from the Hague-based tribunal in recent months .
The decision follows what the government described as an “in-depth review” of the Court’s functioning since it began operations in 2002, concluding that the ICC’s effectiveness remains “limited and uneven across different regions” .
‘Political Instrumentalization’ of Justice
In an official statement released Monday, the Chadian government accused the ICC of persistently concentrating its judicial activities on the African continent, while cases opened in other regions have failed to yield concrete progress .
Chadian authorities pointed to statistical evidence supporting their claims: out of 13 investigations opened by the Court since its inception, nine concern African states. Furthermore, of the seven individuals currently in ICC custody, six are being prosecuted in African cases .
“Judicial activity of the court on the global South in general and the African continent in particular [shows] willing victims of a form of political instrumentalization of the ICC,” the government statement said .
The withdrawal notification was submitted to the UN Secretary-General, who serves as the depositary of the Rome Statute, the treaty establishing the ICC. The decision will take effect one year from the date of formal notification, in accordance with Article 127 of the Rome Statute .
A Wave of Withdrawals
Chad joins a growing list of nations exiting the Court amid mounting criticism of perceived double standards. In early July, three military-led West African nations—Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger formally initiated their withdrawal processes, denouncing the ICC as an “instrument of neo-colonial repression in the hands of imperialism” . Venezuela also announced its departure late last week .
The exodus comes at a particularly turbulent moment for the Court, following the dismissal of ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan just days ago. Eighty-two of the Court’s 125 member states voted to remove Khan for serious misconduct, triggering an election process for a replacement that is not expected until next year .
U.S. Pressure and Regional Dynamics
According to reports, Chad’s decision was influenced by a request from the United States. A statement from Chad’s foreign ministry indicated that the U.S. Deputy Secretary of State for African Affairs had called on the Chadian government to reconsider its ICC membership during a telephone conversation last Thursday, expressing concerns about the institution’s functioning .
The Biden administration has been actively pressuring the Court to drop arrest warrants against Israeli leaders over Gaza and to cease investigations into alleged crimes involving U.S. troops .
African Alternatives and Continental Justice
In its withdrawal statement, the Chadian government called on the African Union and its member states to “reflect more deeply on the future of a system that appears biased” and to accelerate the strengthening of African judicial mechanisms .
Chad reaffirmed its commitment to combating impunity for serious crimes but expressed confidence that “national judicial systems and African judicial mechanisms are now increasingly capable of carrying out this mission fully” .
The withdrawal adds momentum to longstanding African Union discussions about establishing continental alternatives to the ICC, a debate that has intensified since the AU adopted a formal ICC Withdrawal Strategy in 2017, arguing that the Court had “strayed from its founding values” .
For now, the ICC has stated it “remains firmly committed to advancing accountability and delivering justice for victims of crimes that deeply shock the conscience of humanity,” while deputy prosecutors from Fiji and Senegal will run the prosecutor’s office in the interim
