ICC Urged to Investigate Wagner Group's Alleged War Crimes in West Africa
The International Criminal Court is requested to examine claims that Russia-linked mercenaries are promoting atrocities and dehumanization in West Africa.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has been asked to review a confidential legal report accusing the Russia-linked Wagner Group of committing war crimes by disseminating images of alleged atrocities in West Africa on social media.
According to the brief, seen exclusively by The Associated Press, these videos depict men in military uniform butchering corpses of what appear to be civilians with machetes, removing organs, and posing with severed limbs.
Fighters are heard saying they plan to eat parts of their victims' bodies.
Social media platforms serve as a window into the alleged horrors occurring in remote areas with little oversight.
Experts argue that circulating these images could constitute war crimes under the Rome Statute, which prohibits outrages on personal dignity.
The brief calls for an ICC investigation into Wagner and other entities implicated in abuses in Mali and Russia between 2021 and 2024, including extrajudicial killings, torture, mutilation, and cannibalism facilitated through social media channels.
The situation has worsened as Western powers withdraw from the region, with Russia expanding military cooperation with African nations via Wagner, a private security company with ties to Russian intelligence and military operations.
According to the brief, seen exclusively by The Associated Press, these videos depict men in military uniform butchering corpses of what appear to be civilians with machetes, removing organs, and posing with severed limbs.
Fighters are heard saying they plan to eat parts of their victims' bodies.
Social media platforms serve as a window into the alleged horrors occurring in remote areas with little oversight.
Experts argue that circulating these images could constitute war crimes under the Rome Statute, which prohibits outrages on personal dignity.
The brief calls for an ICC investigation into Wagner and other entities implicated in abuses in Mali and Russia between 2021 and 2024, including extrajudicial killings, torture, mutilation, and cannibalism facilitated through social media channels.
The situation has worsened as Western powers withdraw from the region, with Russia expanding military cooperation with African nations via Wagner, a private security company with ties to Russian intelligence and military operations.
