Many false claims have been shared on social media over the years to support the campaign for the secession of Nigeria’s southeast region and the release of separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu. The latest claims state that the International Criminal Court (ICC) has imposed sanctions on Nigeria over Kanu’s continued incarceration. But this is false; Kanu’s case is not listed amongst those currently being investigated by the court. The ICC also denied the claim.
“BREAKING NEWS: International Criminal Court ICC imposes sanctions on all Nigerian goods over failure to release Nnamdi Kanu and reward him with $100 million for his illegal arrest, which they deemed a terrorist act,” reads the heading of a post shared on Facebook.
It further claims that the ICC announced that the sanctions against Nigeria would increase every month until Kanu is released and, as a result, the prices of goods could increase as much as 100 percent.
Screenshot of the false Facebook post, taken on April 22, 2025
The post has been shared more than 170 times since it was first published on March 28, 2025, while the claim has also appeared elsewhere on Facebook (see here and here).
Kanu is leading a secessionist campaign for the creation of the Biafra Republic. He was arrested in Kenya and extradited to Nigeria on June 27, 2021. He faces charges related to treason (archived here).
His trial began afresh on March 21, 2025, after the former judge recused herself (archived here).
However, the claim that the ICC has imposed sanctions on Nigeria and ruled for compensation in favour of Kanu is false.
How sanctions work
Countries or foreign organisations impose sanctions to punish parties that threaten their national interests or violate international laws.
The types of sanctions include travel bans, arms embargoes, import and export restrictions, asset freezes and sports sanctions (archived here).
Bodies like the United Nations and the European Union have imposed sanctions on countries in the past (archived here).
However, the ICC cannot impose sanctions on countries since it only prosecutes individuals (archived here).
The ICC operates under the Rome Statute, which allows it to prosecute four main crimes (archived here).
These include genocide, war crimes, crime of aggression (when a state attacks the sovereignty of another) and crimes against humanity, including murder, rape, imprisonment, enforced disappearances, enslavement – particularly of women and children – sexual slavery, torture, apartheid and deportation.
Moreover, Nnamdi Kanu’s case is not listed among those currently being investigated by the ICC (archived here).
“These claims are false,” ICC spokesman Fadi El Abdallah told AFP Fact Check in an email.
Nigeria’s ICC investigation
The ICC investigated alleged crimes committed by Boko Haram since 2009 and those allegedly committed by the Nigerian security forces after they started to repel attacks from the militant group (archived here).
Boko Haram was designated as a terrorist organisation by the US government in 2014 and has spawned splinter groups – including Ansaru, which is linked to Al-Qaeda (archived here).
The preliminary investigation by the ICC was concluded in December 2020 (archived here).
Since then, the ICC has been holding talks with the Nigerian government on the situation (archived here).
However, the court has not published a warrant of arrest for any Nigerian, whether for being a member of Boko Haram or the security forces (archived here).
AFP Fact Check previously debunked a claim that the ICC issued a warrant of arrest for Nigeria’s senate president.