The Prosecutor’s Office of the International Criminal Court (ICC) will seek the court’s consent to open an investigation into alleged combat -related war crimes Russia vs Ukraine.
This step comes five days after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine took place on February 24. ICC prosecutor Karim Khan said he was keeping a close eye on the developments in the fighting between the two countries.
“Today I would like to announce that I have decided to continue the investigation into the situation in Ukraine, as soon as possible,” Khan said in a statement on Monday (28/2). AFP.
“I am satisfied that there is reasonable basis to believe that both alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity have occurred in Ukraine since 2014 (when Russia annexed Crimea),” he added.
Khan went on to say, “given the expansion of the conflict in recent days, it is my intention that this investigation will also cover any new crimes falling within the jurisdiction of my office committed by any party to the conflict on Ukrainian territory.”
Khan’s statement came after many parties debated whether the ICC would take steps regarding Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine.
Experts argue about the authority of the ICC to handle this conflict because neither Russia nor Ukraine signed the Rome Statute on which the criminal tribunal was founded.
However, Khan said his office would seek support and financial assistance from the ICC’s 123 member states to carry out this investigation.
“The importance and urgency of our mission is too serious to be mired in the problem of lack of facilities and infrastructure,” Khan was quoted as saying Reuters.
The United Nations (UN) human rights monitoring team confirmed that 102 civilians were killed and 304 others injured as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has entered its 5th day.
This figure is far less than Ukraine’s Interior Ministry data which reveals 352 civilians have been killed since the Russian invasion took place on February 24. At least 14 of them are children.
In addition, it said 1,684 people were injured, including 116 children.
More than half a million citizens have also been displaced from Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale aggression on February 24. The majority of Ukrainians fled to neighboring Poland.
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