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 Thursday, August 21, 2008 |
ICC prosecutor reviewing Georgia conflict for war crimes
Abigail Salisbury at 1:40 PM ET
[JURIST] International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo [official profile] announced [press release] on Wednesday that his office is reviewing allegations [Reuters report] that war crimes have been committed during the recent conflict over Georgia's breakaway region of South Ossetia [BBC report]. On Monday, Russian officials had expressed their intent to file a complaint [JURIST report] against Georgia with the ICC, and said that their government is considering filing another complaint with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) [official website]. Russia's Foreign Ministry has also called for Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili to be tried for war crimes before the ICC. Last week, Georgia filed a complaint [text, PDF; press release, PDF] against Russia with the ICJ, alleging that invading Russian troops have also engaged in the murder, rape and mass displacement of civilians [JURIST report].
Moreno-Ocampo has recently come under heavy criticism for his prosecutorial tactics and choices. Earlier this week, the president of Human Rights Watch [official website], mediation advisors, and other NGO leaders expressed doubt regarding his judgment [The Guardian report; JURIST report] and concern that his behavior could threaten the credibility of the court. Moreno-Ocampo has also received sharp criticism from both the League of Arab States (LAS) and the African Union (AU) [official websites] for his decision to seek the arrest [JURIST report] of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir [BBC profile, JURIST news archive]. In June, a Sudanese ambassador was quoted as calling Moreno-Ocampo a "terrorist" [JURIST report].
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Paper Chase is JURIST's real-time legal news service, powered by a team of 30 law student reporters and editors led by law professor Bernard Hibbitts at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. As an educational service, Paper Chase is dedicated to presenting important legal news and materials rapidly, objectively and intelligibly in an accessible, ad-free format.
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