ICC begins inquiry into #EndSARS protests

End SARS protest

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has begun preliminary examination into the recent #EndSARS protests against police brutality.

The office of the ICC prosecutor in a statement, according to BBC, said it had received information on alleged crimes.

The ICC said it would “assess whether the legal criteria for opening an investigation under the Rome Statute are met”.

This comes after civil society organisations threatened to petition the ICC over the crackdown on #EndSARS protesters.

On October 20, videos of men in military uniform opening fire at protesters at the Lekki toll gate in Lagos went viral, sparking national outrage.

Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu said he did not invite the Nigerian Army to the scene. But the army said the governor called on them but that they did not shoot at protesters.

The ICC said it would make findings of the preliminary examination public.