Victims of the atrocities committed in Darfur had to wait more than 20 years for the conviction of Ali Mohammed Ali Ab Al-Rahman or Ali Kushaib
for his role in the killing of more than 300,000 people between 2003 and 2004
For crime against humanity of persecution, guilty. The man now convicted has long denied he is Ali Kushaib, saying he was a simple pharmacist and not involved in the violence
But the judges were not convinced of his defence after dozens of witnesses, hoping for justice, recognized him as the militia leader
With the conviction of Ali Koushaib, the ICC has so far only sentenced African men for war crimes since it was founded 23 years ago
putting an end to the impunity of the severest crimes and bringing justice to the victims
But sometimes referred to as the African Court, the ICC has come under increasing global pressure to increase and improve its credibility
while at the same time it's crippled by US sanctions and struggling for its survival
Issuing arrest warrants for Israeli leaders had cost the ICC dearly. Soon after the prosecutor issued warrants for the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense minister US President Donald Trump slammed sanctions on the prosecutor and several judges and now threatens to sanction the entire court
When the entire court is being targeted, there are difficulties at the level of finances
Perhaps banks will no longer provide services. IT companies, Microsoft is being mentioned, may no longer provide services
then the entire functioning of the ICC could come to a halt
Calling the ICC a neo-colonial instrument, three African countries, Burkino Faso, Nigeria and Mali
last month decided to withdraw from the court. But a lawyer for the victims in Gaza says with the Palestine case
the ICC has improved its credibility. It's not perfect. It shows that it's unable to prevent the commission of atrocities
but there is no alternative. We should discuss again reforms, improvement, not to destroy it
The alternative to this is the law of jungle, is the rule of jungle
which is exactly what we are seeing in Gaza. He says it is crucial that the more than 120 states that have signed up to the Rome Statute
which established the court, step up their efforts to save the ICC as soon as possible
Stepfasten in The Hague