JOHANNESBURG: Zimbabwean leader and African Union chairman Robert Mugabe on Tuesday harshly criticized the International Criminal Court, a news agency reported.

The African News Agency, which is based in South Africa, quoted Mugabe as saying at the late-night close of an African Union summit in Johannesburg that the International Criminal Court is not wanted in Africa.

“This is not the headquarters of the ICC; we don’t want it in this region at all,” said Mugabe, who is chairing the 54-member AU for one year. “There is a view that we should withdraw from the ICC. Unfortunately, the treaty that set up the court was not signed by the AU, but by individual countries.” Some African leaders say the court has unfairly targeted African heads of state.