Tchad quits Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

The Government of the Republic of Chad has announced its withdrawal from the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC). In a statement released on July 27, 2026, N’Djamena justified this decision by pointing to an unsatisfactory record of the international jurisdiction, which it accuses of a "clear and unmistakable selectivity" primarily targeting the African continent.

The Government of Chad has formally notified the United Nations Secretary-General, custodian of the Rome Statute, of its decision to withdraw from the ICC, in accordance with Article 127 of the Rome Statute.

In its statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Integration and Chadian Nationals Abroad explains that this decision is the culmination of an in-depth examination of the functioning of the International Criminal Court since its entry into force in 2002.

The government also relies on statistics published by the ICC, updated on May 11, 2026, to support its position. According to these data, out of 125 States Parties to the Rome Statute, 33 are African countries. The Court has opened 13 investigations since its creation, most of which concern African states.

The statement highlights that as of this date, "9 out of 13 cases currently under investigation involve African states, while only 4 are open in other regions with little concrete progress".

It also notes that among the seven individuals detained by the Court, "6 are being prosecuted in African situations and one is being tried in a situation outside the continent".

The Chadian authorities argue that these numbers "explain the widely shared perception of a concentration of the ICC’s judicial activity on the global South in general and Africa in particular", denouncing what they see as an "instrumentalization of the ICC by politics".

In response to this assessment, the Chadian government calls on the African Union and its member states to strengthen their judicial mechanisms to promote "the emergence of a more equitable, balanced, credible and effective continental justice", in respect for the sovereignty of African states.

The Chadian capital reaffirms its "irreversible attachment to the fight against impunity for the most serious crimes", arguing that national jurisdictions and African judicial mechanisms now have increased capabilities to fully assume this mission.

Ledjely.com