ICC Dismisses Kidnapping Petition Against Nigeria

The International Criminal Court (ICC) dismissed an anonymous petition requesting an investigation into alleged systemic kidnappings in Nigeria as crimes against humanity. The petition, titled “Formal Communication Requesting Investigation into Systemic Kidnappings in Nigeria as Crimes Against Humanity,” was filed under Document No.

ICC-RoC46(3)-01/26. Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), announced this dismissal in a statement on Thursday, noting that the ICC’s Pre-Trial Chamber II rejected the application on September 1, 2026, “in limine” due to lack of legal basis.

Fagbemi expressed concern over the petition's initial processing, stating it was assigned to Pre-Trial Chamber II on August 26 without proper evaluation of its competence. He criticized this as a breach of procedural safeguards and indicated that Nigeria would make representations to the ICC regarding the matter.

Fagbemi reaffirmed Nigeria's commitment to the Rome Statute while asserting that the investigation of domestic crimes remains the responsibility of Nigerian authorities.