War Crimes
Even Putin is not beyond the law
Russia’s ability to launch its so-called “special military operation” to undertake “denazification” in Ukraine has not so far faced international legal sanction. On 25 February, a…
The duty to prevent genocide in Ukraine
As the Russian invasion of Ukraine has laid bare the brutality of the campaign, there have been increasing debates over whether it constitutes genocide. On 12 April, US President…
Russia is committing atrocity crimes in Ukraine, but not genocide
Russia is committing atrocity crimes in Ukraine, but they do not constitute genocide. While that distinction matters little to people caught up in this brutal armed conflict,…
It’s a mistake to allow Myanmar’s junta to appear in Rohingya case
While the military coup in Myanmar has dominated mention of the country in international news over the last 12 months, the slow wheels of international justice for the Muslim…
Podcasts
Rules Based Audio (Episode 3): In Conversation with Hilary Charlesworth
In this episode of Rules Based Audio, Ben Scott talks to Professor Hilary Charlesworth
R2P: An idea whose time never comes
In May, the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution to include an item about “the Responsibility to Protect” on the Assembly’s annual agenda. On one view, the…
A missed opportunity for the International Criminal Court
While Australia is facing its own war crimes allegations in relation to Afghanistan, the UK is the focus of allegations with respect to Iraq. The trials of UK…
A chance for the US to change its tune on justice
On Monday last week, 72 countries at the United Nations offered their “unwavering support” for the International Criminal Court (ICC). Among them were Australia, Canada, the UK,…
UN report on US killing of Iranian commander misses the mark
In the early hours of 3 January 2020, missiles fired from US drones killed ten people near Baghdad airport. Drone strikes by the US are almost commonplace these days, but what…
With Syrian prosecutions, a rare case of universal jurisdiction
With so much else going awry in the world, it’s perhaps easy to forget that the Syrian civil war is rolling on into its tenth year. Scholars and policymakers have long been…