International criminal justice

Days before the anniversary of 7 October, the Middle East is gripped by an escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, one that could drag in the region, the US and even China.

Rather than investing in a failed statehood project, governments can empower Palestinians through other channels – and counter Israel’s impunity to suppress them.

States providing military assistance should take note.

A ‘reset’ in British foreign policy should extend to reinvigorating the UK’s commitment to international courts and institutions.

Confrontation with the courts shores up Netanyahu’s supporter base – even as Israel’s international isolation deepens.

A generational divide in the US is pushing Biden towards pressuring Tel-Aviv. But the ICC’s intervention brings pressure from the right. The president must stay focused on bringing peace to Gaza and the region.

Why has the Court issued arrest warrants, and what happens next?

The Court’s final ruling may take years, but it has now taken its decision on ‘provisional measures’.

The scale of death and destruction in Gaza is increasingly viewed as an indictment of a system facing perhaps its most daunting and most stubborn challenge – global perceptions of hypocrisy.

Episode 27 of our weekly podcast examines the Syrian regime with signs that governments in the Middle East are prepared to engage with Bashar al-Assad again.

The ICC’s arrest warrants against Putin and Lvova-Belova show the commission of international crimes is not without consequences.

Chatham House experts examine the shifts in geopolitical alliances, security, energy, and supply chains and whether these changes are likely to be long-lasting.

The growing numbers of Ukrainian women recovering from sexual violence at the hands of Russian forces need support, protection and legal aid, writes Hrystyna Kit.

Felipe Agüero, a survivor of the Chilean dictator’s regime, recalls the day Augusto Pinochet was detained on October 16, 1998.

In the third of a series of interviews with the Queen Elizabeth II Academy faculty, Alex Cooley examines the challenges of reigning in kleptocratic networks.

Explaining what war crimes are and how, in the circumstances of Ukraine, could war crimes be prosecuted.

The Justice Laboratory is the first major study of the institutions created to enforce international criminal justice standards in Sub-Saharan Africa, including the UN tribunal for the Rwandan genocide.

Janet Anderson on the principle of universal jurisdiction that bridged the ‘impunity gap’ and led to the conviction of a Syrian war criminal

The human rights lawyer helped to prosecute a former officer of the Assad regime for crimes against humanity. He tells Mike Higgins about the landmark case.

The lawyer talks to Mike Higgins about how victims of the Syrian regime organised a grassroots movement for justice

A new UN cybercrime treaty process is raising strong awareness about one of the biggest global challenges and the complexities of addressing it.

How can we make sense of the transnational repercussions of war?

Russia is violating international law in Ukraine using baseless allegations, and states’ responses should be guided accordingly.

Tutu Alicante on the struggle to root out establishment corruption, and the role of foreign states in hindering justice.

The question of whether and how to execute outstanding warrants against Bashir and others is a defining issue for Sudan’s nascent political settlement.

A referral of election violence in Belarus to the International Criminal Court could enhance the support for the Belarusian people at other crucial platforms.

Despite a series of inquiries since 2010, has enough been done to prevent future British involvement in the torture of detainees?

This episode considers the challenge of effective government communication during COVID-19, and explores the lessons for Myanmar of Cambodia’s Khmer Rouge tribunal.

Second in a two-part series analysing why Ukraine’s attempts at international justice are worth taking - and outlining how the impact goes far beyond just the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Part two examines Ukraine’s appeal to the International Criminal Court (ICC) to seek individual criminal responsibility of the alleged perpetrators of the gravest crimes in occupied Crimea and eastern Ukraine.

First in a two-part series analysing why Ukraine’s attempts at international justice are worth taking - and outlining how the impact goes far beyond just the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Part one examines the response of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to the possibility of holding Russia accountable as a state.

This paper discusses six kinds of humanitarian arrangements intended to provide some security to civilians caught in armed conflict – notifications, evacuations, humanitarian corridors, suspensions of hostilities, protected zones and no-fly zones – outlining relevant international law, identifying operational challenges, and making recommendations for good practice.

As diverse forms of cooperation between states, international organizations and non-state groups increasingly shape armed conflicts, the need for legal clarity on who qualifies as a party to conflict has never been greater.

To reinvigorate multilateral human rights diplomacy and overcome the challenge of US–China polarization, powerful states must engage with innovative ideas and new leadership emerging from the Global South.