Legal

Suspended countries

Sonetel applies the following policy when deciding which countries to suspend.

Sonetel will suspend resale of phone numbers from, and refuse sign-ups originating from IP addresses in, any country that is subject to an active International Criminal Court (ICC) or International Court of Justice (ICJ) proceeding that (i) includes a binding legal measure — such as an arrest warrant, charge, or provisional order — for alleged war crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide, (ii) expressly attributes responsibility to state authorities or state-supported forces, and (iii) where the persons or entities so named still hold governmental or military power or are being actively shielded from arrest or surrender by the current state authorities, until the measure is withdrawn, expires, or is resolved, or until the named perpetrators are removed from power and the state is demonstrably cooperating with the court.

 

Currently suspended countries

The following countries are suspended as of May 2025.

Country Binding ICC / ICJ measure State actors implicated Still in power / shielded? Why suspension applies
Russia ICC arrest warrant for President Vladimir Putin (17 Mar 2023) Kremlin & Russian armed forces Yes – Putin remains president; Russia refuses to enforce ICC orders All three prongs satisfied; no cooperation with ICC
Sudan ICC warrants for ex-President Omar al-Bashir & others (2009-2010) Government officials & Janjaweed militias Yes – Bashir still at large; authorities have not surrendered him Perpetrators remain shielded; warrants active
Myanmar ICJ provisional-measures order in The Gambia v. Myanmar (23 Jan 2020) Myanmar military (Tatmadaw) Yes – junta still rules and continues attacks on civilians Military leaders retain power and defy ICJ order
Israel ICC arrest warrants for PM Benjamin Netanyahu & ex-DM Yoav Gallant (21 Nov 2024) Israeli civilian-military chain of command Yes – Netanyahu is still PM; Israel rejects ICC jurisdiction All prongs met; shielding of sitting officials