Category Archives: War crimes
Violating international law to get rid of dictators is alluring but wrong – and dangerous
There is an alluring idea that anything – including illegal action – should be taken to protect people from dictators. It is that reasoning that some are tapping into to insist that American military strikes on Venezuela and the kidnapping of President Nicolas Maduro … Continue reading →
More of the same, or changes on the way? For the first time in a decade, the Canadian War Crimes Program sheds light on what it has been up to.
Atrocities in Sudan, Gaza, and Ukraine raise a question: do people in countries far away, like Canada, have a role in addressing the suffering of others? While these conflicts can appear remote, affecting only distant strangers, the horrors they produce … Continue reading →
Catching perpetrators to prosecute them abroad: could piecemeal justice contribute to comprehensive accountability for atrocities committed in Gaza?
They thought they’d enjoy the festival, maybe a waffle and a Hoegaarden. Instead, the two Israeli soldiers were detained and questioned by Belgian police after facing allegations of war crimes stemming from the Hind Rajab Foundation, an organization set up to track soldiers … Continue reading →
Algorithms, Automation and Accountability: Imagining Responsibility for the Crimes of Machines
The following is a guest post by Masoud Zamani is a lecturer in international law and international relations at the University of British Columbia. His research focuses on the intersection of emerging technologies and international legal accountability. In recent years, … Continue reading →
Sifting through speculation: What we do and don’t know about Canada’s Structural Investigation into the Israel-Hamas War
In the wake of the recent revelation that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) had opened a structural investigation into international crimes committed during the Israeli-Hamas conflict in early 2024, many have projected their gravest fears, and greatest hopes, on what an … Continue reading →
There must be consequences: Accountability for war crimes can help stop attacks on hospitals
The doctors assumed that a well-marked hospital would be safe, especially since the warring parties in the region were informed of its existence and its life-saving operations. But they were wrong, and the attacks came in waves. When it was … Continue reading →
‘What are perpetrators actually doing, and to whom?’ A call to focus on the actions of perpetrators of mass atrocities
The following contribution to JiC’s ongoing symposium on Alette Smeulers’ “Perpetrators of Mass Atrocities Terribly and Terrifyingly Normal?” comes from Dr. Iva Vukušić, an Assistant Professor of International History at Utrecht University, the Netherlands. You can access all contributions to … Continue reading →
