This is not a rhetorical question. The arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant were issued on 21 November 2024, 21 months ago. The next step is to confirm the charges contained in the arrest warrants, yet there is no indication that the Deputy Prosecutors, who have been in charge of the OTP since May 2025, have any intention of doing...
[Natia Navrouzov is a lawyer and the Executive Director of Yazda, a global Yazidi organisation that has documented ISIL’s crimes since 2014 and supports survivors of the Yazidi genocide through legal, psychosocial, and advocacy work] On 20 March 2026, the Paris Assize Court convicted Sabri Essid of genocide and crimes against humanity for atrocities committed against the Yazidi community in Iraq....
[Efrén Ismael Sifontes Torres is an Ayudante de Segunda in international law courses, and the academic co-coordinator of the Observatory of International Humanitarian Law, for the University of Buenos Aires School of Law] On 24 July, the Venezuelan's interim authorities announced through their Minister of Foreign Affairs' X account, the “firm and unwavering” decision to withdraw from the Rome Statute and therefore, leave the International...
[Kenaw Akililu is currently a MAS candidate in the Master of Advanced Studies in Transitional Justice, Human Rights and Rule of Law at the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights, and a former law lecturer at Bahir Dar University] Introduction Cyber operations and targeting of cyber infrastructure, including data centres, are increasingly employed during armed conflict and can cause...
[Darryl Robinson is a Professor at Queen’s University, Faculty of Law (Canada)] Matthew Gillett and Rohit Gupta make several excellent points in their two-part response (here and here) to my two newest articles about ecocide, Humans Matter Too and a Challenge for Ecocide Scholarship. I would urge readers, before drawing conclusions about my articles based on the portrayal in those posts,...
In the wake of Prosecutor's Khan's removal from office, a number of people have asked me whether the current Deputy Prosecutors or the next Prosecutor could withdraw the arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant. In this post, I will explain why I think the answer is formally no but practically yes. To begin with, nothing in the Rome Statute gives the...
[Catherine Maia is a professor of International Law at Lusófona University (Portugal), and Sciences Po Paris (France)] On 9 June 2026, ICC Pre-Trial Chamber II issued a significant decision in the Situation in Ukraine concerning the interpretation of Article 97 of the Rome Statute. Although the judgment remains heavily redacted, it provides the Court’s most comprehensive guidance to date on the consultation procedure available...
[Terje Einarsen is Professor of International Law at the University of Bergen, former Judge at Gulating Court of Appeals and Chairperson of the Norwegian Section of International Commission of Jurists] Part I of this post discussed the institutional and political context for the upcoming ASP meeting. It also considered issues of due process and argued that the front door to removal and suspension through...
[Terje Einarsen is Professor of International Law at the University of Bergen, former Judge at Gulating Court of Appeals and Chairperson of the Norwegian Section of International Commission of Jurists] When the Assembly of States Parties (ASP) of the International Criminal Court (ICC) meet in New York on the 24th of July, to decide on the fate of the current elected...
For two years, selective leaks of information have led to a deluge of breathless media reports about the serious misconduct the Prosecutor allegedly committed against a member of his staff. I won't repeat those allegations here -- you can find them for yourself -- but they have always focused on nonconsensual sexual conduct, including sexual assault and rape. The Bureau...
[Ezequiel Jimenez Martinez has a PhD in International Law, is a Senior Fellow at the Center for International Law Research and Policy and an Associated Senior Lecturer at the Pompeu Fabra Law Faculty. He is the author of Governing the International Criminal Court: the History and Practice of the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute (Brill, 2025). All...
[Akila Radhakrishnan is an independent human rights lawyer and gender justice expert. She is the former President and Legal Director of the Global Justice Center. Payal Shah is an international legal expert on gender, health, and conflict. She serves as the Director of Research, Legal, and Advocacy at Physicians for Human Rights.] In this post, we delve into how reproductive violence can support findings...