scholarly journals The role of the international criminal court in the implementation of the international humanitarian law: An applied study

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (10) ◽  
pp. 131-150
Author(s):  
Etesam Alabd S. Alwheebe ◽  

This study seeks to clarify the importance of the International Criminal Court as a criminal mechanism in the application of international humanitarian law, and its effectiveness in limiting violations of this law by punishing the perpetrators of these violations as a permanent court, as well as its role in laying the foundations for international criminal justice. It has become necessary to clarify the importance of the Court and its effective role in the application of international humanitarian law, due to the presence of massive and brutal violations of human rights during armed conflicts as well as under the belligerent occupation. Previous legal studies dealt with the issue of the implementation of international humanitarian law, but it is accepted that they focused on the historical aspect of the emergence of international humanitarian law, and they focused on the theoretical aspect of the issue of mechanisms for implementing international humanitarian law more than the practical aspect and therefore did not adequately address the criminal mechanism represented in The establishment of the International Criminal Court and this is the basis on which our study is based. The previous studies lacked the application that enriches any study in this field. This is what we emphasized in our study and given the importance of the topic of the role of the International Criminal Court in the implementation of international humanitarian law and also considering the recentness of some mechanisms for the implementation of international humanitarian law, the studies that dealt with this topic remain insufficient, and many aspects of the study on this topic are still an area for research and study One of these aspects that have not been adequately researched and specifically the criminal mechanism for the implementation of international humanitarian law represented in the International Criminal Court, and this study comes to enrich the practical aspect of the implementation of international humanitarian law.

2000 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 395-425 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heike Spieker

Non-international armed conflicts are more numerous, more brutal and entail more blood-shed today than international ones. The Statute of the International Criminal Court explicitly upholds the traditional distinction between international and non-international conflicts, and armed conflicts will have to be characterized accordingly. But the tendency to adapt the international humanitarian law (IHL) regime for non-international conflicts to the rules for international ones emerges. Article 7 on Crimes Against Humanity and Article 8(2)(c) and (e) on War Crimes amount to real progress in this respect. Yet, the regulation on war crimes in particular does not provide for comprehensive criminal responsibility of individual perpetrators in non-international conflicts.


2008 ◽  
Vol 8 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 319-329 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gauthier de Beco

AbstractThis note discusses the distinction between international and non-international armed conflicts in the prosecution of war crimes before the International Criminal Court. It analyses the international humanitarian law applicable to both kinds of conflict, and the way in which the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia succeeded in prosecuting war crimes committed in non-international armed conflicts. It also studies the two war crimes regimes provided for in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. The note then examines how Pre-Trial Chamber I dealt with this issue in its Decision on the confirmation of charges against Thomas Lubanga Dyilo and the problems it faced in doing so. It concludes with a plea for the abolition of the distinction between international and non-international armed conflicts with respect to war crimes in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.


2014 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 51-69
Author(s):  
Saud Hassan

In order to end global impunity of perpetration of heinous crimes against humanity and gross violation of human rights and to bring individual perpetrators to justice, international community felt the need for a permanent international criminal court.2 As the armed conflicts and serious violations of human rights and humanitarian law continue to victimize millions of people throughout the world, the reasons for an international criminal court became compelling.3 In many conflicts around the world, armies or rebel groups attack ordinary people and commit terrible human rights abuses against them. Often, these crimes are not punished by the national courts. Here the ICC is complementary to national criminal jurisdictions.4 The court only acts in cases where states are unwilling or unable to do so.5 The jurisdiction of the Court is not retrospective and binds only those States that ratify it.6 Unlike the International Court of Justice in The Hague, whose jurisdiction is restricted to states, the ICC has individualized criminal responsibility. However, the role of USA regarding the establishment and continuation of ICC has caused the organization fall in a trouble. The better cooperation of USA and other states could make the organization more active and effective as to its activities. The view of this paper is to analyze the role of USA towards the establishment, continuation and function of the International Criminal Court. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/nujl.v1i0.18525 Northern University Journal of Law Vol.1 2010: 51-69


2015 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 281-307 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rogier Bartels

Impeding humanitarian access and the starving of civilians is prohibited under international humanitarian law in times of both international and non-international armed conflicts. Such conduct is criminalised under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC Statute) when committed during an international armed conflict. However, without good reason, it is not a war crime when committed during a non-international armed conflict. Contemporary conflicts, such as that in Syria, show that this is a problematic omission. This article addresses the challenges in prosecuting the denial of humanitarian access during international armed conflicts and examines the options to prosecute before the International Criminal Court such denial in times of non-international armed conflict as other war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. The author concludes that these options would not suffice and proposes to add to the ICC Statute the starvation of the civilian population, including through impeding humanitarian access, as a war crime for non-international armed conflicts.


Author(s):  
Diana Buttu ◽  
Féilim Ó hAdhmaill

Chapter 6 discusses the historical development of universal human rights protections during warfare through the establishment of International Humanitarian Law. It critically assesses the challenges posed to such protections by powerful states, geo-political considerations and the changing nature of war and conflict. It examines the operation of the International Criminal Court, the role of the UN Security Council and the geo-political manipulation of the UN by the USA and others, using the case of the Israel/Palestine conflict as but one example. In a world where most armed conflicts now involve non-state actors and casualties are overwhelmingly civilians, it also critically assesses attempts to reform IHL through, for example, the 1977 Protocols and the limitations of such reform.


2009 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ifeonu Eberechi

AbstractIntrinsic in the concept of international justice for violations of international humanitarian law is the requirement of cooperation by states and, to a large extent, regional bodies with the International Criminal Court (ICC). Unlike domestic courts, the ICC is not endowed with law enforcement power nor could such power be imputed to it as part of its functions. It is against this background that the on-going crisis of corporation between the ICC and the African Union (AU) following the indictment of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir for international crime portends a far reaching implication for the administration of international criminal accountability. As part of a broader diagnosis of the reasons for the AU's opposition, this paper, while discussing armed conflicts in Africa, which provides the fillip for gross human rights violations in the region, exposes the contributions of the West. It concludes that an effective enforcement of international justice in the region must include an inquiry into the role of international actors and Western powers in promoting and exacerbating the situation.


Author(s):  
Fleck Dieter

This introductory chapter provides an overview of international humanitarian law. During the past decades, international humanitarian law has been subject to a progressive development which culminated in the four 1949 Geneva Conventions, the 1977 Protocols Additional to these Conventions, the 1980 Weapons Convention, the 1993 Chemical Weapons Convention, and the 1998 Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. While many efforts have been made by states to implement their obligations under international humanitarian law, much work remains to be done at international and national levels. This task poses a challenge to political decision-makers and to their legal and military advisers, many of whom must shoulder this workload in addition to other duties and in spite of the pressure of other priorities. Recent achievements of worldwide co-operation in this field are manifold: The interrelationship between humanitarian law and the protection of human rights in armed conflicts is largely accepted and better understood today than ever before. A progressive development of international criminal law has led to increased jurisprudence on war crimes and crimes against humanity by national courts, international ad hoc tribunals, and finally to the establishment of the International Criminal Court (ICC).


Author(s):  
Fernanda García Pinto

Abstract The International Committee of the Red Cross and the International Criminal Court are two very different entities that simultaneously apply international humanitarian law but do so after their own perspectives. This article proposes a cautious yet critical approach to some of their divergent interpretations (conflict classification, the difference between direct and active participation in hostilities, intra-party sexual and gender-based violence, and the notion of attack) and examines how the broader legal system copes with these points of divergence. The analysis considers the institutional characteristics of these two organizations and the pluralistic nature of international humanitarian law as well as its dynamic rapport with international criminal law in order to highlight the versatility needed to face the challenges posed by contemporary armed conflicts.


1998 ◽  
Vol 38 (325) ◽  
pp. 671-683 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie-Claude Roberge

After years of relentless effort and five weeks of intense and difficult negotiations, the Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) was adopted and opened for signature in Rome on 17 July 1998. This historic event represents a major step forward in the battle against impunity and towards better respect for international humanitarian law. For too long it has been possible to commit atrocities with total impunity, a situation which has given perpetrators carte blanche to continue such practices. The system of repression established by international law clearly has its shortcomings, and the time has come to adopt new rules and set up new institutions to ensure the effective prosecution of international crimes. A criminal court, whether at the national or international level, does not put a stop to crime, but it may serve as a deterrent and, consequently, may help reduce the number of victims. The results achieved in Rome should thus be welcomed, in the hope that the new Court will be able to discharge its mandate to the full.


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