Prosecutor Khan: ICC may investigate executions of Ukrainian POWs
The execution of Ukrainian civilians and prisoners of war (POWs) as an act of impunity may be within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC), emphasizes ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan.
At a meeting with Ukrainian journalists in The Hague (Netherlands), Khan noted that in addition to crimes related to the illegal transfer of Ukrainian children and the shelling of civilian infrastructure, for which the ICC issued arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin, the Russian ombudsman and high-ranking Russian military officials, other crimes were also identified.
Responding to a question about whether the ICC is considering the possibility of investigating the facts of the execution of Ukrainian prisoners of war, Khan said: "Whether one is a head of state, head of government, a commander or a foot soldier ... one cannot summarily execute a civilian or a prisoner of war who has laid down his or her arms."
In this context, the ICC Prosecutor added: "If people act with impunity, then this may fall under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court, since we have a mandate regarding Ukraine."
Asked whether Russian commanders could be held accountable for war crimes committed by foreign mercenaries under their command, Khan said: "Everyone who is involved, takes part, whether they are direct military personnel or others, has certain responsibilities, shouldn’t think that they can bypass the fundamental principle of the Geneva Conventions."