Nigeria

The ICC prosecutor began receiving communications related to the situation in Nigeria in November 2005, and a preliminary examination by the ICC Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) was made public on 18 November 2010. The examination focuses on alleged crimes committed in the Middle Belt states as well as the Niger-Delta region, in the context of armed conflict between Boko Haram and Nigerian security forces.

The OTP found a reasonable basis to believe that both Boko Haram and Nigerian security forces committed crimes against humanity and war crimes. The OTP indicated in 2015 that it has identified eight potential cases that satisfy ICC jurisdiction requirements. Whether any of these cases will appear before the ICC depends on the ability of Nigeria to prosecute these crimes at the national level.

On 20 January 2015, the ICC prosecutor issued a statement denouncing reports of escalating violence in north-eastern Nigeria and the use of women and children as suicide bombers, sexual slaves, soldiers, and wives. The ICC then conducted a mission to Abuja to reiterate and amplify the prosecutor’s statement ahead of elections in February 2015.

The ICC has engaged national authorities, the national press, and civil society actors in its efforts to examine the legitimacy of existing national proceedings to address alleged Rome Statute crimes in Nigeria, as well as to prevent the commission of and collect information on new allegations. The admissibility assessment regarding the eight potential cases identified by the Office in 2015 in relation to the non-international armed conflict is ongoing.

Furthermore, the assessment of three relevant reports relating to the Nigerian Security Forces is ongoing. In 2018, the OTP held a third technical meeting with Nigerian authorities in Abuja to gather additional information on national proceedings conducted with respect to the eight potential cases identified.