The executive body of the International Criminal Court Wednesday voiced concern over the recent withdrawal of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, saying it undermined the global pursuit of justice.
The military-led West Africa states announced in September they were pulling out of the ICC, which prosecutes individuals for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The three countries said in a joint statement last year that the court, based in The Hague, was “an instrument of neo-colonialist repression in the hands of imperialism”.
The ICC’s Assembly of State Parties, the body representing the countries that make up the court, said it had “taken note of the situation with concern” and regretted the withdrawals.
Countries leaving the ICC “risk undermining the collective pursuit of justice and weakening global efforts to end impunity”, the statement said.
A total of 125 countries are currently members of the ICC but several major powers, including China, India, Israel, Russia, and the United States, have not joined.
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