Justice: Central African Republic
A victims’ leader in the Central African Republic is asking his government and the International Criminal Court (ICC), a permanent war crimes court in The Hague, to act on an arrest warrant. The warrant concerns Noureddine Adam, a former security minister, over crimes alleged in 2013.
The call comes 13 years after the violence, in a statement dated 5 November. We could not see the original statement, so the details below rest on a published account of it.
Key Facts
- Who. Antoine Tombet, head of the Collectif des victimes pour la justice (Victims’ Collective for Justice), a victims’ group, wants Noureddine Adam, a former security minister, arrested.
- Warrant. Issued under seal on 7 January 2019 and made public on 28 July 2022.
- Charges. Alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity at detention centres in Bangui, the capital, in 2013.
- Status. A warrant is not a finding of guilt; Adam is a suspect, and the court has no police.
- Unknown. Whether the government or the court has responded is not known.
A victims’ leader says talk of fighting impunity, meaning escape from punishment, must be matched by action. The court cannot arrest anyone itself, so the appeal lands on governments.
What Tombet Is Asking For
Antoine Tombet says he survived the CEDAD, a 2013 state intelligence service linked to that year’s violence. He leads the Collectif des victimes pour la justice (Victims’ Collective for Justice, our translation), a victims’ group, and addressed President Faustin-Archange Touadéra, the country’s head of state, and his government.
He asks the government to reaffirm publicly its will to cooperate with the ICC. He wants it to use judicial, police and diplomatic means to help locate, arrest and surrender Adam.
He also asks it to approach states that could help, to explain obstacles in public, and to protect victims and witnesses from reprisals. He wants a named contact for the Collective’s requests.
He asks the ICC Prosecutor’s office, the court’s investigating arm, to keep up its investigation and cooperation efforts. He asks the Registry, the court’s administrative arm, to inform victims better and guarantee their rights to protection, participation and reparation.
In the statement, as we read it and translating from French, he wrote: “We are not asking the ICC to prejudge anyone’s guilt.” He wants the procedure to move toward a fair trial.
He said officials’ talk of fighting impunity must be matched by “verifiable acts”. Those are his claims, and we could not check them.
The Warrant and the 2013 Charges
The ICC Pre-Trial Chamber, the judges who review cases before trial, issued the warrant for Mahamat Nouradine Adam on 7 January 2019 under seal. French-language press spells his name Noureddine Adam, and the warrant was made public on 28 July 2022.
It covers alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity at detention centres in Bangui in 2013. Press reports put the period between April and November 2013, which we could not confirm in the warrant text.
Those are allegations, and no court has ruled on them. Adam was the country’s Minister of Security from 31 March to 22 August 2013.
He was a senior leader of the Seleka, a mainly Muslim rebel coalition that seized power in 2013. Human Rights Watch, an international rights group, said in August 2022 that he was reported to be in Sudan and had moved between Sudan, Chad and the Central African Republic.
An arrest warrant is not a finding of guilt, and Adam is a suspect until a court rules.
Why Arrests Are Hard
The ICC has no police force of its own. It relies on states to arrest suspects and hand them over.
A warrant can sit unexecuted for years if no government acts. This is why Tombet asks Bangui and other states to move.
Our explainer on the Central African Republic gives the wider background. A Russia-linked security presence also shapes its politics, as in our report on Wagner, a Russian private military group, and mining.
Our report on five activists held in the country adds civil society context, and more sits in our Central African Republic hub.
What It Means for You
For US readers, this is a test of whether international justice can reach people accused of atrocities. The ICC depends on governments to act, so each public appeal tests that cooperation.
Anyone following Central Africa will watch how its government handles justice. A visible step on the warrant, or continued silence, would say something about its priorities.
What Is Not Known
We do not know whether the government or the ICC has responded to the statement. We could not see the original statement, and our account relies on a single published report of it.
We also do not know where Adam is today, since the 2022 belief that he was in Sudan may be out of date. No state is known to have moved to arrest him.
Tombet leads an advocacy group, so what the authorities have or have not done is his account. We have not checked it independently.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the ICC arrest warrant for Adam?
It is a 2019 order, made public in 2022, to arrest Mahamat Nouradine Adam over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Bangui detention centres in 2013. It is not a finding of guilt.
Why can the ICC not simply arrest him?
The court has no police of its own. It depends on states to arrest suspects and surrender them.
Has the government responded?
We do not know. We could not see any response from the government or the ICC, and the claims about official inaction come from Tombet.
Sources
International Criminal Court public announcement of the warrant, July 2022 (the court’s own pages could not be opened by us); Human Rights Watch statement of 8 August 2022; statement of the Collectif des victimes pour la justice dated 5 November 2026 (as published). Date read 9 November 2026.
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