These treaties require signatories to extradite or investigate a suspect in their territory. International treaties require countries that have ratified them to use universal jurisdiction for war crimes committed in an international armed conflict (1949 Geneva Conventions), apartheid (the 1973 Convention against Apartheid), torture (the 1984 Convention against Torture), and enforced disappearances (the 2006 Convention against Enforced Disappearance). Although this principle has existed for a very long time, it had rarely been used by national courts until a few years ago. This principle under international law is known as universal jurisdiction. National courts can investigate and prosecute these crimes even if they were committed abroad, by foreigners and against foreigners, because such crimes are considered so grave that ensuring that they do not go unpunished concerns humanity as a whole. However, national courts are able to act even if there is no such link for a limited number of international crimes, including war crimes, crimes against humanity, torture, genocide, piracy, attacks on United Nations personnel, and enforced disappearances. For example, if the crime was committed on the territory of the country wishing to exercise jurisdiction (territorial jurisdiction principle), the suspect is a citizen of that country (active personality principle), or if the victim is a citizen (passive personality principle). National courts of a country usually are able to investigate a crime if there is a link between that country and the crime. What’s the basis for European courts to try atrocities committed in Syria and Iraq? What is universal jurisdiction? This is also very important but distinct from prosecuting the crimes committed in Syria and Iraq.Ī Syrian man carries his two girls as he walks across the rubble following a barrel bomb attack on the rebel-held neighborhood of al-Kalasa in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo on September 17, 2015.ġ. In the wake of a series of shocking terrorist attacks in France, Belgium, and Germany, law enforcement agencies in European countries have focused on identifying and prosecuting people who may be planning such acts. This question-and-answer document explains how and why European courts can try crimes committed in Syria or Iraq the significance of the arrival in Europe of some suspected war criminals among asylum seekers and why it is important to identify, investigate, and evidence permitting, prosecute them even if the crimes were committed thousands of kilometers away. The cases demonstrate that grave crimes in Syria and Iraq are of concern to humanity as a whole and can be prosecuted even if those responsible flee abroad. The cases are the first cracks in impunity and the first credible attempts at holding accountable those responsible for terrorizing civilians in the recent conflicts in Syria and Iraq. These cases are made possible by the arrival in Europe of both victims and suspects in the context of the refugee crisis. Ground-breaking investigations and prosecutions are underway in some European countries against people accused of torture, beatings, and kidnappings in Syria and Iraq.
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