The Judges of Trial Chamber VIII at the hearing held on 17 August 2017 at the seat of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, The Netherlands. ©ICC-CPI. Today, 17 August 2017, Trial Chamber VIII of the International Criminal Court (“ICC” or “Court”) issued a Reparations Order in the case of The Prosecutor v. Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi, concluding that Mr Al Mahdi is liable for 2.7 million euros in expenses for individual and collective reparations for the community of Timbuktu for intentionally directing attacks against religious and historic buildings in that city. Noting that Mr Al Mahdi is indigent, the Chamber encourages the Trust Funds for Victims (“TFV”) to complement the reparations award and directed the TFV to submit a draft implementation plan for 16 February 2018. The Chamber considered the observations of the ICC Prosecutor, the Defence, the Legal representatives of Victims (“LRV”) representing the 139 reparations applicants, the TFV, the ICC Registry, four appointed experts and amici curiae, including UNESCO. The Chamber recalled the reparations principles established by the ICC Appeals Chamber’s decision in the Lubanga case, including the non-discrimination principle. Trial Chamber VIII also stressed that reparations in the present case are designed – to the extent achievable – to relieve the suffering caused by the serious crime committed and enable victims to recover their dignity and deter future violations. Reparations may assist in promoting reconciliation between the victims of the crime, the affected communities and the convicted person. The Chamber highlighted the importance of cultural heritage and stressed that, because of their purpose and symbolism, most cultural property and cultural heritage are unique and of sentimental value. Their destruction thus carries a message of terror and helplessness; destroys part of humanity’s shared memory and collective consciousness, and renders humanity unable to transmit its values and knowledge to future generations. The Chamber ordered reparations for three categories of harm: damage to the attacked historic and religious buildings, consequential economic loss, and moral harm. Reparations are to be collective for rehabilitation of the sites and for the community of Timbuktu as a whole to address the financial loss and economic harm as well as the emotional distress suffered as a result of the attack. It may also include symbolic measures – such as a memorial, commemoration or forgiveness ceremony – to give public recognition of the moral harm suffered by the Timbuktu community and those within it. The Chamber also ordered individual reparations for those whose livelihoods exclusively depended upon the attacked buildings and those whose ancestors’ burial sites were damaged in the attack. The limited number of individual reparations ordered should be prioritised during the implementation. The Chamber has already concluded that it considered Mr Al Mahdi’s apology to be genuine, categorical and empathetic. As a symbolic measure to ensure that victims have access to Mr Al Mahdi’s apology, the Chamber orders the Registry to produce an excerpt of the video of Mr Al Mahdi’s apology and post it on the Court’s website. In addition, the Chamber ordered one symbolic euro to be received by the Malian State and UNESCO given the specific nature of the case. The Chamber assessed Mr Al Mahdi’s liability for these reparations at 2.7 million euros. Noting Mr Al Mahdi’s indigence, the Chamber encourages the TFV’s to complement any individual or collective reparations to the extent possible. The Chamber set a deadline for 16 February 2018 for the TFV’s draft implementation plan including the objectives, outcomes and necessary activities. The LRV and Defence may file any observations on the draft implementation plan within 30 days of its notification. Upon subsequent approval by the Chamber, the TFV will then identify projects and discrete implementation partners for the Chamber’s final approval.

                            An organised crime group (OCG) operating in the Sliven region of Bulgaria was dismantled following Eurojust’s coordination of five investigations of trafficking of human beings (THB) for the purpose of sexual exploitation of Bulgarian women to the Netherlands and Belgium, as well as money laundering. These five investigations resulted in two separate international operations, Operation Palma and Operation Leerdam, and respectively the establishment of two joint investigation teams (JITs), which were set up and coordinated as well as financially supported by Eurojust. Operation Palma Operation Palma was initiated by the Dutch authorities in 2013, investigating criminal activity of trafficking of human beings that took place between 2003 and 2010. Following the first coordination meeting at Eurojust in November 2015, the authorities of Bulgaria and the Netherlands set up a JIT in January 2016 to coordinate their investigative efforts. Within the framework of this JIT, between 4 and 11 October 2016, coordinated operations were carried out in Sliven, Bulgaria, and Utrecht and Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Two suspects were detained in Bulgaria, one of them on the basis of an European Arrest Warrant (EAW) issued by Prosecutors Office Utrecht and the other one for money laundering offences of large scale. At the same time in the Netherlands another suspect was arrested. During these coordinated operations a great number of witnesses were questioned in the Netherlands, Belgium and in Bulgaria (in Bulgaria by mixed Bulgarian/Dutch police-teams). Searches and seizures were conducted in two different towns in Bulgaria. Photos and documents were seized, and the Bulgarian court imposed freezing orders on real estate and vehicle. The Dutch police is preparing a financial report concerning the illegally obtained profits by the main suspect in the Dutch case. Operation Leerdam In November 2015, the Bulgarian authorities requested the support of Eurojust in another ongoing Dutch investigation, called Operation Leerdam, for trafficking of Bulgarian women to The Netherlands and Belgium. Eurojust was instrumental in detecting links between the investigations carried out by the Bulgarian and Dutch authorities within the framework of Operation Palma and Operation Leerdam, and another ongoing investigation in Belgium on sexual exploitation in Antwerp and Brussels of victims of Bulgarian nationality. In February 2016, Eurojust organised a joint coordination meeting during which prosecutors, investigators and police officers from Belgium, Bulgaria and the Netherlands in charge of the 5 linked investigations gathered for the first time to discuss and agree on a coordinated approach to dismantle the OCG. The meeting was attended by twenty-five participants, including Europol officials. As a result of the coordination meeting, Belgium, Bulgaria, and the Netherlands set up a new JIT in Operation Leerdam to define and execute a common case strategy to ensure that the actions in one case would not interfere with the investigations in the other case. In the framework of an international specialized operation, on 27 September 2016, the leader and two members of the OCG were arrested in Amsterdam. In Bulgaria, six other members of the OCG were arrested pursuant to EAWs and subsequently surrendered to the Belgian and Dutch authorities. One person was arrested in Germany based on a EAW issued by the Netherlands. Ten simultaneous searches were carried out in four different towns in Bulgaria. Evidence and documents related to the OCG were found and seized, as well as cash and drugs. Witnesses were questioned in Belgium, Bulgaria and the Netherlands. During all the investigative actions that took place in Bulgaria, members of the JIT from the Netherlands, including the prosecutor supervising the investigation in Utrecht, were present. Eurojust supported the activities of the national authorities participating in these two separate JITs, including providing both investigation teams with significant logistical and financial assistance, which in the end amounted to approximately EUR 90 000. Dimitar Hadzhiyski, Assistant to the National Member for Bulgaria at Eurojust, said: ‘For the first time Eurojust facilitated the coordination between two separate JITs. Due to the active involvement of Eurojust, the links between all five national investigations carried out in Bulgaria, the Netherlands and Belgium were established, proper planning of the investigative activities was performed, which resulted in a very successful coordinated operation, dismantling the activities of the OCG. ’