Statement of the ICC Prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, following the conditional release of Mr Gbagbo and Mr Blé Goudé
Statement of 1 February 2019
We note the decision of the Appeals Chamber. The Prosecution's position was that we would be amenable to release with a set of conditions attached. These conditions would be to ensure that Messrs Laurent Gbagbo and Charles Blé Goudé would be available before the Court should the trial proceedings against them continue.
The Prosecution still has the right to appeal the January 15 decision to acquit Mr Gbagbo and Mr Blé Goudé the serious charges against them. At this point, the Prosecution team is still waiting for the Judges of Trial Chamber I to provide their written decision detailing the legal reasons for their decision to acquit. Only after we have had the opportunity to carefully examine and analyse their reasoning will my Office make a decision on whether to appeal.
The Office of the Prosecutor of the ICC conducts independent and impartial preliminary examinations, investigations and prosecutions of the crime of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and aggression. Since 2003, the Office has been conducting investigations in multiple situations within the ICC's jurisdiction, namely in Uganda; the Democratic Republic of the Congo; Darfur, Sudan; the Central African Republic (two distinct situations); Kenya; Libya; Côte d'Ivoire; Mali; Georgia and Burundi. Pre-Trial Chamber II is seized of the Prosecutor's request for authorisation to commence an investigation into the situation in the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. The Office is also conducting preliminary examinations relating to the situations in Bangladesh/Myanmar; Colombia; Guinea; Iraq/UK; Palestine; the Philippines; Nigeria; Ukraine, and Venezuela.
Source : Office of the Prosecutor