In association with the International Commission of Jurists

International Criminal Law

23 Oct

[Chuka Arinze-Onyia is a practicing criminal defense lawyer with an avid interest in international justice issues. He authored this article during a recent stint as an International Justice in Africa Fellow with Amnesty International.] On 16 December 2022, the ICC Prosecutor announced that his office had concluded the investigation phase of its work in Central African Republic (CAR) and would not pursue new...

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18 Oct

In a world where powerful states are becoming more brazen in their impunity, it is crucial to give voice to those who resist. Along with nearly 800 lawyers, scholars, and practitioners, representing a diverse range of perspectives from academia and practice, I have signed a statement warning of the possibility of genocide in Gaza, Palestine. This open letter underscores the...

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17 Oct

Introduction  In March 2022, I wrote a piece for Opinio Juris in which I described the international legal community as a “visible college.” Playing on Schachter’s concept of an “invisible college” of international lawyers “dispersed throughout the world” (p 217) but united in their faith in the law’s pacifying and transformative potential, my piece celebrated international lawyers’ willingness to engage with...

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12 Oct

Since my fields of research include criminal law, international law, and international humanitarian law, several colleagues and students have asked for my preliminary legal assessment regarding the recent attacks in Israel by Hamas terrorists. These terrorist attacks were egregious and shocking violations of human dignity and cannot be justified in any context.  Although facts are still being gathered, the available evidence...

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02 Oct

[Jennifer Trahan is a Clinical Professor at NYU’s Center for Global Affairs and Director of their Concentration in International Law and Human Rights.] It is time for States Parties to amend the Kampala crime of aggression amendments and remove the jurisdictional gaps. At the Rome Conference, many states, particularly those from the Non-Aligned Movement, Germany, and Italy advocated for the inclusion of the crime of aggression...

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28 Sep

[Mariam Bezhanishvili (LinkedIn; Twitter; ResearchGate) is a PhD candidate at the European University Viadrina, researching on the protection of property during armed conflicts and occupations. She was formerly a visiting professional at the International Criminal Court and a legal intern at the International Bar Association ICC&ICL Programme.] On 18 July 2023, the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued a judgment in relation to the Situation in the...

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20 Sep

I had hoped not to write any more posts about the international vs. internationalized tribunal debate. I have written extensively on the topic already, and the prospects for an international tribunal grow dimmer with each passing day. Alas, Patryk Labuda's most recent entry on the topic at Just Security requires a response: although the arguments are the same unpersuasive ones...

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12 Sep

In recent days, Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio “Lula” da Silva has generated much controversy by declaring that, should Russian President, Vladimir Putin, visit the G20 Meeting in Brazil in 2024, he would not be arrested, in defiance of the existing International Criminal Court’s (ICC) arrest warrant against him. Eventually, Lula backtracked, stating the arrest was not up to him, but Brazil’s judiciary. In so doing,...

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25 Aug

[Nick Leddy is Head of Litigation at Legal Action Worldwide, and a former Trial Lawyer for the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, where he worked, inter alia, on the situation in Myanmar/Bangladesh] Six years ago, in August 2017, the Myanmar military began a deadly operation in Rakhine State targeting the Rohingya group. This “Clearance Operation” caused incredible...

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23 Aug

Evropeyska Pravda is reporting that, although clearly not its first choice, Ukraine would be willing to accept an internationalized tribunal for the crime of aggression as long as it is based in another state's judicial system. Here are the relevant paragraphs, quoting the Deputy Head of the Office of the President: Ukraine decided on these concessions, Andriy Smirnov admitted for the...

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