Registered Vessels of Comoros, Greece and Cambodia

Jurisdiction – General status

The Union of the Comoros deposited its instrument of accession to the Rome Statute on 18 August 2006. The Court therefore has jurisdiction over crimes listed in the Rome Statute committed on the territory of Comoros or by its nationals from 1 November 2006 onwards. Under article 12(2)(a) of the Rome Statute this includes jurisdiction over vessels or aircraft registered to the Comoros.

Procedural history and focus of the preliminary examination

On 14 May 2013 a law firm acting on behalf of the Government of the Union of the Comoros transmitted to the OTP a referral "of the Union of the Comoros with respect to the 31 May 2010 Israeli raid on the Humanitarian Aid Flotilla bound for Gaza Strip, requesting the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court pursuant to articles 12, 13 and 14 of the Rome Statute to initiate an investigation into the crimes committed within the Court's jurisdiction, arising from this raid''. On the same day the Prosecutor announced the opening of a preliminary examination on the referred situation, as is done as a matter of policy in instances of referrals from States parties. The OTP also received other communications in relation to the Flotilla incident. On 6 November 2013 the Prosecutor announced her decision that the requirements for opening an investigation into the situation had not been met, and thus the conclusion of the preliminary examination. On 16 July 2015, following a request for review presented by the Government of the Union of the Comoros, Pre-Trial Chamber I requested the Prosecutor to reconsider her decision. On 6 November 2015, the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) decided by majority to dismiss, in limine and without discussing its merits, the Prosecutor's appeal against the decision of Pre-Trial Chamber I requesting the Prosecutor to reconsider the decision.

On 29 November 2017, the Prosecutor notified PTC I of her "final decision", as required by rule 108(3). Having carried out a thorough review of all the submissions made and all the information available, including information newly made available in 2015-2017, the Prosecutor remained of the view that the information available did not provide a reasonable basis to proceed with an investigation. The final decision filed with the Court provided extensive reasoning in support of this conclusion.