Civilians are being killed in Ukraine. So, why is investigating war crimes so difficult?

Wed, 16 Mar 2022 18:26:51 +1100

Andrew Pam <xanni [at] glasswings.com.au>

Andrew Pam
<https://theconversation.com/civilians-are-being-killed-in-ukraine-so-why-is-investigating-war-crimes-so-difficult-178155>

"The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, is opening an
investigation into whether war crimes may have been committed in Ukraine. He is
urgently seeking to preserve evidence as the fighting rages on.

War crimes are serious violations of international humanitarian law, which
seeks to regulate the conduct of war and the treatment of civilians and
prisoners during war.

As Russian troops have reached major cities, there have been increasing reports
of strikes on civilian objects, such as apartment buildings, schools,
kindergartens, hospitals, and oil and electricity facilities.

With the fighting now moving deeper into urban areas – and Russian forces
becoming frustrated by Ukrainian resistance – the harm to civilians could
become much greater.

Ukraine is not a party to the Rome Statute of the ICC, but it has twice
accepted the court’s jurisdiction over any international crimes committed in
its territory. This could include offences committed by pro-Russian separatists
or Russian or Ukrainian military forces.

It does not matter that Russia is not a member of the court and has not
accepted its jurisdiction. But it does mean Russia, like the US, is very
unlikely to cooperate with the court."

Cheers,
       *** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net               Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/                 Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/            Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/               Manager, Serious Cybernetics

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