International Criminal Law

Sudanese anti-regime demonstrators, holding up a banner calling for "Freedom, Peace and Justice" carry on with their protest on April 11, 2019 in the area around the army headquarters in Sudan's capital Khartoum.

Ouster of Sudan’s Bashir Is Only the Beginning

After 30 years in power, Sudan President Omar al-Bashir is finally out. But the coming days, weeks, and months will be precarious: concerns over the military takeover, a proliferation…

Apr. 12, 2019 John Hursh

Assyrian Christians, who had fled the unrest in Syria and Iraq, attend a prayer for the 220 Assyrian Christians abducted by Islamic State group jihadists from villages in northeastern Syria in recent days, at the Saint Georges Assyrian Church in Jdeideh, northeast of the Lebanese capital Beirut on February 26, 2015. One person holds a sign reading, “Assyrian Genocide 1915 Never Again!”

Accountability for War Crimes in Syria: The “Criminalization” Confusion

A new approach to defining what constitutes a "war crime" is needed to ensure domestic courts can provide accountability for war crimes committed in Syria.

Apr. 11, 2019 Oona A. Hathaway, Paul Strauch and 2 more

Two men walk near the Paloch oil fields in Upper Nile State, the site of an oil complex and key crude oil processing facility in the north of the country near the border with Sudan. March 2, 2014

Beyond Sanctioning Elusive War Criminals, Prosecute the Profiteers

Bidibidi is the world’s second-largest refugee camp. A sea of tents and huts spilling into Uganda from its northern border, the settlement now hosts more than a quarter million…

Apr. 4, 2019 Holly Dranginis

EU Commissioner for migration and home affairs, Dimitris Avramopoulos, speaks during his visit at Europol in The Hague on June 28, 2018.

Domestic Courts Step Up: Justice for Syria One Case at a Time

Further to Ryan Goodman’s recent post on the United States’ welcome support for the German request for the extradition of a high-level Syrian suspect, I have just finished…

Mar. 25, 2019 Beth Van Schaack

Former Bosnian Serbian commander Ratko Mladic appears on a TV screen when people gather to watch a live broadcast from the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) on November 22, 2017 in Sokolac as UN judges began handing down their verdict in the trial of Mladic, accused of genocide and war crimes in the brutal Balkans conflicts over two decades ago.

Revisiting the Mladić Trial Amidst Trump Admin’s Attacks on International Criminal Justice

International criminal justice has hit a rough patch. The work of the International Criminal Court (ICC) is under regular attack from the Trump administration, which opposes the…

Mar. 19, 2019 Kate Brannen

United Nations Security Council meeting on January 25, 2019 at the United Nations in New York.

National Security at the United Nations This Week

North Korea is evading UN sanctions, DRC violence could amount to crimes against humanity, calls for a Security Council referral to the ICC of the situation in Myanmar, China prevents…

Mar. 15, 2019 Preston Lim

International Law Commission holds special commemorative event.

Letter to the Editor – Germany’s Extradition Request for Gen. Jamil Hassan, with U.S. Support

I very much appreciate Just Security’s bringing to your readers’ attention the German extradition request to Lebanon for Syria’s General Jamil Hassan, who is under suspicion…

Mar. 13, 2019 Claus Kress

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir delivers a speech to the nation on February 22, 2019, at the presidential palace in the capital Khartoum.

“Just fall, that is all!” Is Sudan on the Brink of Change?

Sudan has entered the third month of widespread and sustained protests across the country, and there is now some indication that President Omar al-Bashir’s grip on power is weakening.…

Feb. 25, 2019 John Hursh

Syrian child Khaled al-Ghorani lies at a clinic after he had his hand amputated in Kafar Batna in the Syrian rebel enclave of Eastern Ghouta on March 1, 2018 following reported air strikes by Syrian government forces.

New Financial Vehicles for Assisting Victims of Atrocity Crimes: A Bold Move for International Justice

Investing in social bonds can offer new way to fund reparations by judges on the International Criminal Court., writes Ambassador Scheffer.

Feb. 21, 2019 Ambassador David Scheffer

Judges Marc Perrin de Brichambaut, Bertram Schmitt and Raul Pangalangan sit in the courtroom prior to the sentencing of Congolese vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba and his accomplices before the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, The Netherlands, on March 22, 2017.

ICC Judge Schmitt Counsels Resilience to Preserve International Justice

Editor’s note: At a difficult time for the International Criminal Court (ICC)—criticism over recent rulings, resistance from current and prospective members, and threats from…

Feb. 13, 2019 Bertram Schmitt

Syria Found Liable for the Death of War Correspondent Marie Colvin

Judge Amy Berman Jackson, of the D.C. District Court, has unsealed a $302 million judgment against the Syrian Arab Republic, finding it liable for the assassination of intrepid…

Feb. 1, 2019 Beth Van Schaack

Activists, many of whom are children themselves, rally against lowering the minimum age of criminal responsibility in front of the Senate building in Manila on January 25, 2019. Children as young as 12 years old could be incarcerated under a bill backed by Philippine lawmakers on January 24.

To Presidential Candidates Drafting Platforms: Restore U.S. Human Rights Leadership

As the number of candidates running for president in 2020 rapidly expands, an important component of any foreign policy platform, along with protecting national security and advancing…

Jan. 30, 2019 Aryeh Neier