Category Archives: International criminal court

Extremist fighter’s groundbreaking sex slavery trial opens at ICC

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Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud accused of torture and extrajudicial punishments

The trial of a former Islamic militant who allegedly forced hundreds of women into sexual slavery has opened at the international criminal court, where he has been accused of crimes against humanity, war crimes, and in a first, persecution on the grounds of gender.

Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud, 42, was transferred to the court’s custody more than two years ago from Mali, where he had been held by local authorities for more than a year.

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Notorious Sudanese militia chief in Darfur conflict arrested in CAR

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Ali Kushayb, wanted for human rights abuses and war crimes, faces trial in The Hague

One of the most notorious Sudanese militia leaders in the brutal conflict in Darfur has been arrested in the Central African Republic and handed over to the International criminal court.

Ali Kushayb, who had been on the run for 13 years, surrendered to authorities in a remote corner of northern CAR near the country’s border with Sudan, said a spokesman for the ICC.

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Australian government tells ICC it should not investigate alleged war crimes in Palestine

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International Criminal Court rejects Australia’s argument it has no jurisdiction because Palestine is ‘not a state’

The Australian government has told the International Criminal Court it should not investigate alleged war crimes in Palestine because Palestine is “not a state”, arguing the court prosecutor’s investigation into alleged attacks on civilians, torture, attacks on hospitals, and the use of human shields, should be halted on jurisdictional grounds.

Australia was lobbied to make the submission to the court by Israel, which is not a party to the court. But the office of the prosecutor has rejected Australia’s argument, saying it had not formally challenged Palestine’s right to be a party to the court before.

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Senior ICC judges authorise Afghanistan war crimes inquiry

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Decision overturns earlier rejection of request to examine actions of US soldiers

Senior judges at the international criminal court have authorised an investigation into alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Afghanistan, overturning an earlier rejection of the inquiry.

The ICC investigation will look at actions by US, Afghan and Taliban troops. It is possible, however, that allegations relating to UK troops could emerge in that process.

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Australia’s offshore detention is unlawful, says international criminal court prosecutor

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Treatment of refugees and asylum seekers ‘cruel, inhuman or degrading’, but does not warrant prosecution, ICC office says

Australia’s offshore detention regime is a “cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment” and unlawful under international law, the international criminal court’s prosecutor has said.

But the office of the prosecutor has stopped short of deciding to prosecute the Australian government, saying that while the imprisonment of refugees and asylum seekers formed the basis of a crime against humanity, the violations did not rise to the level to warrant further investigation.

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Sudan signals it may send former dictator Omar al-Bashir to ICC

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Talks resolve to send ‘those who face arrest warrants’ for war crimes to The Hague

Sudan has suggested it is prepared to hand over the former dictator Omar al-Bashir to the international criminal court in The Hague to face trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The decision marks a dramatic shift from the previous official position of the country’s new rulers, though observers warned that many obstacles still needed to be overcome before the 76-year-old reached a court room.

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Netanyahu calls for sanctions over ICC war crimes investigation

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Israeli PM condemns ‘travesty’ after court said it intended to look at alleged incidents

Benjamin Netanyahu has called for sanctions against the international criminal court and people who work for it, a month after its chief prosecutor announced she intended to investigate alleged Israeli war crimes.

“I think that everybody should rise up against this,” the Israeli prime minister said in an interview with Trinity Broadcasting Network, the world’s largest Christian television network.

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ICC to investigate alleged Israeli and Palestinian war crimes

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Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu hits out at ‘baseless and scandalous decision’

There is sufficient evidence to investigate alleged Israeli and Palestinian war crimes committed in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, the international criminal court has announced.

In a landmark decision, the ICC said it saw “no substantial reasons to believe that an investigation would not serve the interests of justice”.

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Ex-Sudan leader Omar al-Bashir sentenced to two years for corruption

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Deposed president convicted of corruption, receiving illegal gifts and possessing foreign currency

Omar al-Bashir, the former president of Sudan, has been sentenced to two years in detention after being found guilty of corruption, receiving illegal gifts and possessing foreign currency.

Bashir has been in prison in Khartoum since being forced from power in April when security forces withdrew their support for his repressive regime after months of protests.

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A brutal warlord has been convicted – so why doesn’t it feel like a triumph? | Vava Tampa

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Bosco Ntaganda killed, raped and enslaved Congolese people for years while living in plain sight. Does the world care so little?

In 2015, the international community – led by the US and the UK – finally decided to take Bosco Ntaganda to the international criminal court to face justice for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Ntaganda, known as “The Terminator”, became one of the most feared, powerful and brutal warlords in DRC since Rwanda, backed by Uganda, reinvaded DRC in 1998.

Related: DRC warlord 'the Terminator' convicted of war crimes

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ICC submission calls for prosecution of EU over migrant deaths

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Member states should face punitive action over deaths in Mediterranean, say lawyers

The EU and member states should be prosecuted for the deaths of thousands of migrants who drowned in the Mediterranean fleeing Libya, according to a detailed legal submission to the international criminal court (ICC).

The 245-page document calls for punitive action over the EU’s deterrence-based migration policy after 2014, which allegedly “intended to sacrifice the lives of migrants in distress at sea, with the sole objective of dissuading others in similar situation from seeking safe haven in Europe”.

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Nearly 180 dead and 800 injured in Haftar’s assaults on Tripoli

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Libya’s government denounces attacks as barbaric and says evidence will be passed to ICC

Nearly 180 people have died as a result of General Khalifa Haftar’s assault on Tripoli, with at least four civilians killed in aerial bombardment on the Libyan capital overnight.

More than 800 have been wounded since the warlord who controls the east of the country began his attempt to seize the city from the UN-recognised government of national accord nearly a fortnight ago.

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US revokes ICC prosecutor’s visa over Afghanistan inquiry

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Fatou Bensouda wants to open investigation into alleged war crimes, including by US troops

The US has revoked the visa of the international criminal court’s chief prosecutor in response to her intention to investigate potential war crimes by US soldiers in Afghanistan.

A statement from the office of Fatou Bensouda, a Gambian national, said she would continue to pursue her duties for the court, in The Hague, “without fear or favour” and that she would continue to travel to the US. She has not been restricted from visiting the UN headquarters in New York.

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US to deny visas for ICC members investigating alleged war crimes

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Washington also threatened economic sanctions if war crimes court goes ahead with inquiry into US troops in Afghanistan

The United States has announced it will revoke or deny visas to members of the International Criminal Court involved in investigating the actions of US troops in Afghanistan or other countries.

The US secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, said Washington was prepared to take further steps, including economic sanctions, if the war crimes court goes ahead with any investigations of US or allied personnel.

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Those responsible for Syria’s agony must be brought to book, starting at the top

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Despite Russia blocking attempts to investigate Assad’s war crimes, there are glimmers of hope

The final unravelling of the Islamic State’s evil caliphate exerts a horrible fascination. The jihadis committed many appalling crimes in Syria and Iraq – exploiting the chaos caused by the Syrian civil war – and were responsible, directly or indirectly, for murderous attacks in Britain and several other European countries.

Most people expect a reckoning. It is only right that Isis fighters who have been captured alive, and those who gave them aid and succour, should face justice as soon as possible.

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Ivory Coast ex-president Gbagbo released to Belgium

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Prosecution may appeal the acquittal by ICC on charges of crimes against humanity

Former Ivory Coast president Laurent Gbagbo has been released on bail to Belgium following his acquittal by the International Criminal Court in The Hague on charges of crimes against humanity, the court said Tuesday.

Belgium said on Saturday that it had agreed in principle to host Gbagbo pending a possible prosecution appeal against his acquittal, but that final arrangements were being made.

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Belgium agrees to take in former Ivory Coast president

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International criminal court freed Laurent Gbagbo on Friday after his shock acquittal

Belgium has agreed to take in the former Ivory Coast president Laurent Gbagbo following his acquittal at the international criminal court in The Hague, a foreign ministry spokesman has said.

Karl Lagatie confirmed the agreement on Saturday, and added that he did not know if the ex-president was already in Belgium.

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Laurent Gbagbo: former Ivory Coast president freed by war crimes court

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First former head of state ever to stand trial at the ICC spent seven years in custody in The Hague

The international criminal court has freed the former Ivory Coast president Laurent Gbagbo after his shock acquittal in January on charges of crimes against humanity.

Supporters sang and waved flags in The Hague after judges decided to release the 73-year-old on condition that he stays in an as-yet-unnamed country pending an appeal by the prosecution.

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UN court judge quits The Hague citing political interference

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Christoph Flügge warns over ‘shocking’ moves by Trump administration and Turkey

A senior judge has resigned from one of the UN’s international courts in The Hague citing “shocking” political interference from the White House and Turkey.

Christoph Flügge, a German judge, claimed the US had threatened judges after moves were made to examine the conduct of US soldiers in Afghanistan.

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Ivory Coast: Laurent Gbagbo detained again after last-minute appeal

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Former president remains in ICC custody after acquittal on charges of crimes against humanity

The International Criminal Court has dashed Laurent Gbagbo’s hopes of a swift release following the acquittal of the Ivory Coast’s former president on charges of crimes against humanity.

Trial judges had earlier ordered Gbagbo and his right-hand man Charles Ble Goude to be immediately freed after clearing them of any role in a wave of post-electoral violence in 2010-2011 that killed 3,000 people.

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