The West African States of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger have announced their withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC), saying they no longer recognise its jurisdiction.

The three military-led countries accused the court of arbitrarily prosecuting war crimes and serving as an “instrument of neo-colonialist repression.”

They underlined their aim to uphold the protection of human rights in line with their values.

The same argument had earlier been used by the three countries to justify their withdrawal from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

Human rights groups and UN experts have accused Mali’s and Burkina Faso’s armed forces and allied militias of committing war crimes in operations against Islamist militias – alongside atrocities carried out by the militant groups themselves.

National authorities say investigations are under way, but none have so far led to public conclusions.

The ICC, based in The Hague, has been prosecuting the most serious crimes such as genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity since 2002.

All EU countries are members.

However, the U.S., Israel and Russia are not signatories.

In spite of abundant resources such as gold and uranium – largely extracted by European and North American companies , Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger remain among the world’s least developed countries.

Located in the Sahel region on the southern edge of the Sahara, they sit along key smuggling and migration routes towards Europe.

Between 2020 and 2023, military leaders seized power in all three former French colonies after elected governments, backed by Western states, failed to quell Islamist insurgencies.

The juntas have turned increasingly away from Western partners and towards Russia for military cooperation.