The court, in the Dutch city of The Hague, was established in 2002 to hold rogue leaders responsible for atrocities to account.
World leaders had increasingly pushed for its creation in the wake of the Yugoslav wars and the Rwandan Genocide.
It is a court of last resort, intervening only when national authorities cannot, or will not, prosecute.
It can only deal with crimes committed after 1 July 2002, when the Rome Statute – which established the court – came into force.
The Rome Statute has been ratified by 124 countries. A further 34 have signed and may ratify it in the future.
However, Israel is not a member and the US is another notable absence.
