SERAP Tells Tinubu To Refer Benue Killings To ICC

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has called on President Bola Tinubu to urgently refer the ongoing security crisis in Benue State to the International Criminal Court (ICC).

SERAP stated that the referral would empower the court to assume jurisdiction over the violence, unlawful killings, and serious violations of international humanitarian and human rights law occurring in the state.

The civil society organisation also urged the president to ask the ICC prosecutor to extend any ongoing investigations in Nigeria to other states facing violence and other serious violations of international humanitarian and human rights law.

SERAP, which made the request in an open letter dated June 21, 2025, signed by its Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, said there must be accountability for these brutal mass killings, regardless of whether the perpetrators were state actors, non-state actors, or both.

The organisation emphasised that the government was responsible for ensuring accountability, justice, and reparations for these grave human rights violations.

It further maintained that if President Tinubu referred the situation in Benue State to the ICC, it would contribute to fulfilling his expressed commitment to ‘hunt down the perpetrators of the attacks and bring them to justice, deliver justice for victims, and restore peace in the state.”

The organisation also insisted that further reluctance to refer the situation in Benue to the ICC would embolden both state and non-state actors to continue attacking the people of the state with impunity.

While highlighting the alleged complicity of state actors in the situation in Benue, SERAP noted that domestic avenues have proven inadequate for achieving accountability and justice for victims and their families.

It pointed out that the jurisdiction of the ICC extends to those who may be immune from national prosecution, such as the highest political and military leaders who may be potentially complicit in grave human rights abuses in Benue and other regions, including Zamfara, Kebbi, Sokoto, Plateau, Taraba, and Borno states.

SERAP said, “Under Article 14 of the Rome Statute, Nigeria, as a state party to the treaty, can refer the situation in Benue to the ICC prosecutor, requesting an investigation into the grave human rights violations and international crimes committed in the state.”

The body maintained that referring the Benue situation to the ICC was a relatively straightforward process since Article 14 does not impose any evidentiary burden on Nigeria.

Additionally, SERAP noted, “any referral by your government would create a positive obligation for the ICC prosecutor to open an investigation into the situation or establish whether there is a reasonable basis to do so.

“With this referral, the prosecutor would not need to seek Pre-Trial Chamber authorisation to initiate an investigation.

“The ICC prosecutor would have access to relevant admissible evidence regarding the situation in Benue, which may not be readily available to Nigerian security and law enforcement agencies.

“These serious human rights violations and international crimes have afflicted Benue and several other states for far too long, resulting in numerous deaths and considerable displacement.

“The Rome Statute of the ICC provides your government with a unique opportunity to address the ongoing grave human rights abuses in Benue and elsewhere, ensuring justice for victims.

“Justice is not optional; it is an essential prerequisite for vindicating people’s rights. A referral to the ICC would ultimately enhance the capacity of Nigeria’s domestic justice system to prevent and address these human rights violations.

“Nigeria would not be the first country to refer cases to the ICC; nations such as Gabon, Mali, Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and the Central African Republic (CAR) have previously done so,” SERAP stated.