South Africa announced on Friday that it is withdrawing from the International Criminal Court, dealing a major blow to a troubled institution set up to try the world’s worst crimes.
South Africa’s decision followed a dispute last year when Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir visited the country for an African Union summit despite facing an ICC arrest warrant over alleged war crimes.
Justice Minister Michael Masutha told reporters in Pretoria that the court was “inhibiting South Africa’s ability to honour its obligations relating to the granting of diplomatic immunity”.
The ICC, set up in 2002, is often accused of targeting African leaders and has also struggled with a lack of cooperation, including from the US which has signed the court’s treaty but never ratified it.
South Africa would be the first country to leave the court.