Universal Jurisdiction
62 Articles

A Lost Phone Brings a Female ISIS Returnee to Trial for Crimes Against Humanity
Almost six years have passed since the genocide against the Yazidis, an ethno-religious minority group in Northern Iraq, and one of the first trials against a female ISIS returnee…

Accountability in the Time of COVID-19: Syria & Iraq
The coronavirus crisis has dominated the global news coverage, but the war in Syria has not gone away. The ceasefire brokered by Turkey and Russia in March 2020 remains fragile,…

First Yazidi Genocide Trial Commences in Germany
On April 24, 2020, six years after the Islamic State (IS) began persecuting and exterminating the Yazidi, the first ever trial addressing genocide against the religious minority…

Senators Call for Prosecution of Gambian Paramilitary Fighter in US Custody
Rare opportunity to criminally prosecute a person implicated in extremely grave human rights abuses in a U.S. court.

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…

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…

BREAKING: United States Supports Germany’s International Arrest Warrant for Accused Syrian War Criminal
"On Tuesday, the United States government issued a statement supporting Germany’s request to Lebanon to extradite a high-ranking Syrian official accused of war crimes and crimes…

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…

A Congo War Crimes Decision: What It Means for Universal Jurisdiction Litigation in Germany and Beyond
The German Federal Court of Justice, the country's court of last resort in criminal and private law, recently announced its much-anticipated decision in a Congo War Crimes case.…

International Law Roundup: Part III
In addition to discussing developments at the international criminal tribunals, addressed in Parts I and II of this series, the IHL Dialogs also offered insights into human rights…

Can the Int’l Criminal Court Try US Officials?–The Theory of “Delegated Jurisdiction” and Its Discontents (Part I)
This backgrounder covers the key issues of jurisdiction now that the Court is set to open an investigation that may cover alleged torture by US officials.

Libya’s Haftar and Liability of Superiors: Ordering Offenses v. Responsibility for Omissions
Further to Just Security’s coverage on Tuesday of the potential war crimes liability of U.S citizen/Libyan warlord General Khalifa Haftar, this article discusses the distinction…