The following media round up on international and foreign policy issues from around the world for the period of 03 February to 09 February 2025. Guernica 37 will provide weekly media updates from the International Criminal Court, European Court of Human Rights, United Nations, European Union and other sources. Should you wish to contribute or submit a media summary, opinion piece or blog, please send to Ned Vucijak at nenadv@guernica37.com for consideration.
7 February 2025
States have pledged unwavering support for ICC as Trump imposes sanctions
Dozens of countries have expressed their “unwavering support” for the International Criminal Court (ICC) a day after Donald Trump U.S. President Donald Trump authorized potentially far-reaching economic and travel sanctions against the court's staff.
“We reaffirm our continued and unwavering support for the independence, impartiality and integrity of the ICC,” a group of almost 80 countries said in a joint statement. “The court serves as a vital pillar of the international justice system by ensuring accountability for the most serious international crimes, and justice for victims.”
The 79 signatories came from all parts of the world, but make up only about two-thirds of the 125 member states of the ICC.
7 February 2025
UN Human Rights Council launches inquiry into the situation in Eastern DR Congo
The UN HRC agreed by consensus to launch an urgent fact-finding mission and commission of inquiry into atrocities being committed by all parties to the armed conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. The council reached its decision during a special session on the crisis, held at Congo’s request with support from 48 countries from all regions.
During recent fighting in North and South Kivu provinces, the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group seized control of the city of Goma from the Congolese army and its allied militias. Human rights groups, the UN, and the media have reported summary killings, rapes including gang rapes, looting, and unlawful forced labor and conscription. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk expressed concern last week that the recent fighting “risks deepening … much further” the risk of conflict-related sexual violence, which has been “an appalling feature of armed conflict in eastern DRC for decades.”
6 February 20225
Israel withdraws from UN Human Rights Council
Foreign Minister of Israel Gideon Saar formally announced that Israel will withdraw from the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC).
Saar criticized Item 7 of the UNHRC – which is a standing agenda focused on alleged violations of human rights and international law in the Palestinian territories – for being institutionally discriminatory. Israel also claims that the Special Rapporteur assigned to the Israel-Hamas conflict was one-sided, “precluding any chance of objective analysis of the facts”.
Israel now joins the US in stepping away from the international body. This week, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order withdrawing the US from the UNHRC and the UN Relief and Works Agency.
6 February 2025
Amnesty International states that sanctions against the ICC betray international justice system
In response to the executive order announced by President Trump imposing sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC), Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General, said: “This attack against the ICC seeks to damage the Court’s independent pursuit of international justice. The sanctions issued will harm accountability, a crucial ingredient to global and long-term security. They will embolden perpetrators, present and future. They will negatively impact the interests of all victims globally and those who look to the Court for justice in all the countries where it’s conducting investigations, including Darfur, Libya, the Philippines, Palestine, Ukraine and Venezuela.
“The ICC performs a vital role by investigating crimes under international law, often committed by the most powerful individuals, in situations where – without its involvement – the perpetrators would benefit from perpetual impunity. The sanctions are also an affront to 125 member states who have collectively resolved that the Court must be able to effectively pursue justice – which means it must be able to undertake independent judicial functions, such as issuing arrest warrants, for example, against Benjamin Netanyahu or Vladimir Putin.
4 February 2025
UNESCO meeting gathers all African Member States to discuss the return and restitution of cultural property
The event, “New Types of Cooperation and Agreements in the Field of the Return and Restitution of Cultural Property to Africa,” marked a significant step in UNESCO’s ongoing efforts to support Member States by providing a space for dialogue, facilitating knowledge sharing, and promoting innovative solutions for the return and restitution of cultural property.
The conference was held in collaboration with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and the African Union Commission, at the Africa Hall in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The event was spurred by the MONDIACULT 2022 Declaration, which called for open and inclusive international dialogue on the return of cultural property.
3 February 2025
Kenya victims of abduction call for ICC investigation
Victims in Kenya urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Sunday to investigate alleged cases of abduction amid a rise in human rights violations across the country.
The Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC), together with other local rights organisations and several victims of enforced disappearances, signed a petition demanding the ICC to investigate alleged cases of state persecution. The KHRC accused the Kenyan government of extrajudicial killings, police brutality and other instruments of oppression. The claim is that these attacks against civilians amount to crimes against humanity, prohibited under Article 7 of the Rome Statute.