War Crimes
468 Articles
Iraq and Syria: Prospects for Accountability
On February 10, 2016, the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission convened a congressional briefing devoted to the topic of advancing accountability for the commission of international…
“More Than a Domestic Mechanism”: Options for Hybrid Justice in Sri Lanka
For nearly three decades, the government of Sri Lanka fought with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), but after years of resistance, the new government has committed to…
Siege Warfare and the Starvation of Civilians as a Weapon of War and War Crime
“Let me be clear: The use of starvation as a weapon of war is a war crime.” These are the words of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, uttered in connection with the starvation…
Mapping the Law That Applies to War Crimes in Syria
War crimes have been a consistent feature of the Syrian conflict since its inception. Indeed, a map of the war crimes committed in Syria reads like a survey course of the topic.…
Military Commissions and Fairness
My friend Marty Lederman provides a lot of fascinating commentary about the en banc rehearing in the Al-Bahlul case (here and here). I’d like to focus on just part of Marty’s…
No War Crime? No War Crimes Trial!
Editor’s Note: This is the most recent post in a mini-symposium leading up to next week’s en banc oral argument in the DC Circuit in Al Bahlul v. United States. You can check…
The Significant Firsts of an ICC Investigation in Georgia
Yesterday the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court filed a request seeking authority from its Pre-Trial Chamber to begin an investigation into possible war crimes and/or…
Was the Kunduz Strike a War Crime?
As reports poured in over the weekend that the United States bombed a Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) hospital in Kunduz, Afghanistan, killing at least 12 MSF staff members and…
When Do Countries Have to Investigate War Crimes?
In late August, the New York Times and others reported that the US Army had reopened a criminal investigation into the murders of at least 17 civilians in Afghanistan in 2012 and…
Amb. Stephen Rapp on Sri Lanka’s War Crimes Investigation
At the end of August, the United States announced that it would support Sri Lanka’s plan for investigating alleged war crimes that occurred during the final years of the country’s…
Women, Peace and Security: A Review of the High Level Review
September 2015 marks the 15th Anniversary of the landmark UN Security Council Resolution (SCR) 1325 on Women, Peace and Security. UNSCR 1325 prompted significant and important…
US Government Petitions for Rehearing En Banc (Again) in Al Bahlul
The petition is available here. This is not a terribly surprising development. But as I wrote after the panel decision, it’s also not likely to succeed, given the composition…