South Africa tells top UN court that it's accusing Israel of apartheid against Palestinians
South Africa has argued at the United Nationsโ top court that Israel is responsible for apartheid against the Palestinians and that Israelโs occupation of land sought for a Palestinian state is โinherently and fundamentally illegal.โ.
Dutch official says Geert Wilders and 3 other party leaders should discuss forming a new coalition
An official leading preliminary coalition talks in the Netherlands says that the far-right party led by Dutch election winner Geert Wilders should open negotiations with three other parties on forming a new government.
Palestinian foreign minister promises cooperation with international courts on visit to The Hague
The Palestinian Authorityโs foreign minister says he fully supports an International Criminal Court investigation into alleged crimes in the Palestinian territories and by Palestinians who target Israelis.
Russia says top UN court should dismiss Ukraine's case over Crimea and terrorism funding
Russia is urging judges at the United Nationsโ highest court to throw out a case brought by Ukraine against Moscow focussed on the 2014 annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and the arming of rebels in eastern Ukraine in the years before Russiaโs full-scale invasion in February 2022.
UN court issuing appeal ruling in long-running trial of 2 Serbs accused of crimes in Balkan wars
Two allies of late Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic convicted of aiding and abetting murder and other crimes committed by Serb paramilitaries in a Bosnian town in 1992 are set to hear the results of their appeal, 20 years after they were first indicted by a United Nations court.
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, set to receive Ms. Foundation's Woman of Vision Award
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, will be in New York Tuesday night, along with Black Voters Matter co-founder LaTosha Brown, to receive the Ms. Foundationโs Women of Vision Award, as the nationโs oldest womenโs foundation marks its 50th anniversary.
Top UN court rejects Iranian bid to free assets frozen by US
The United Nationsโ top court has rejected Tehranโs legal bid to free up some $2 billion in Iranian central bank assets frozen by U.S. authorities to be paid in compensation to victims of a 1983 bombing in Lebanon and other attacks linked to Iran.
'People's court' tries Vladimir Putin for war in Ukraine
A โpeopleโs courtโ is putting Russian President Vladimir Putin on trial for the crime of aggression over his invasion of Ukraine, in a symbolic move to close an โaccountability gapโ in the absence of an international tribunal with jurisdiction.
Climate activists get a month in prison for Vermeer protest
Two Belgian activists who targeted Johannes Vermeerโs โGirl with a Pearl Earringโ in a climate protest last week have been sentenced to two months in prison, with prosecutors saying their action โcrossed a lineโ of acceptable protest.
Dutch rally to support Iranian protests over woman's death
Thousands of chanting, singing people have held a solidarity demonstration in The Netherlands in support of protesters in Iran who have taken to the streets since the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini following her arrest for allegedly violating the Islamic Republicโs strict dress code.
Dutch nitrogen mediator advises buying out biggest polluters
An independent expert appointed to mediate in the bitter dispute between the Dutch government and the nationโs farmers over plans to drastically slash emissions of nitrogen and ammonia has presented a report that includes a suggestion that the government buy out hundreds of the heaviest polluters.
Lawyers call on intl court to investigate Uyghur treatment
Lawyers have renewed calls for the International Criminal Court to open an investigation into Chinaโs treatment of Uyghurs and other predominantly Muslim groups in Chinaโs Xinjiang region as they presented a dossier of evidence to prosecutors.
Experts set to travel to Ukraine to identify the war's dead
An international organization formed to identify the dead and missing from the Balkan conflicts is preparing to send a team of forensics experts to Ukraine as the death toll mounts more than six weeks into the war caused by Russiaโs invasion.
Kenyan lawyer goes on ICC trial in witness tampering case
A Kenyan lawyer has gone on trial at the International Criminal Court charged with bribing and threatening prosecution witnesses so that they would withdraw their statements in a case that ultimately collapsed amid widespread witness interference.
US blocks solar panel materials from China over labor abuses
The Biden administration says a Chinese company that produces a key ingredient in solar panels will be barred from the U.S. market as part of a broader effort to halt commerce tied to the countryโs repressive campaign against Uyghurs and other minorities.
Lawyers urge ICC to probe alleged crimes against Uyghurs
A group of lawyers has presented a dossier of evidence to prosecutors at the International Criminal Court that they say establishes jurisdiction for the global tribunal to investigate allegations Chinese authorities are involved in grave crimes targeting Uyghurs.
ICC judges uphold acquittal of former Ivory Coast president
I thank all the people of Ivory Coast and Africa for their support,โ he said. It was not clear what his next step will be or when he might seek to return to Ivory Coast. He wants to return after seven years.โMore than 3,000 people were killed after Gbagbo refused to accept defeat by his rival, current Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara. AdGbagbo still has strong support in Ivory Coast and his followers say they have been left out the countryโs reconciliation process in the years since his ouster. ___Associated Press writer Toussaint N'Gotta in Abidjan, Ivory Coast contributed.
After election, talks underway to form new Dutch coalition
Dutch caretaker Prime Minister Mark Rutte speaks with the media following exit polls in the general election in The Hague, Netherlands, March 17, 2021. (Piroschka van de Wouw/Pool via AP)THE HAGUE โ What is expected to be a complex process to form a new Dutch government got underway Monday with leaders of parties that won seats in last week's parliamentary elections laying out their preferred coalition options. Rutte's VVD won 35 of the 150 seats in the lower house of parliament; D66 won 23. AdIf, as expected, Rutte leads the next government, the 54-year-old would head his fourth coalition and will be in line to become the longest-serving Dutch prime minister. D66 leader Sigrid Kaag said she wants to look at issues rather than potential coalition partners.
Caretaker PM Rutte seen as winning most seats in Dutch vote
Dutch caretaker Prime Minister Mark Rutte of the VVD Liberal party votes in the Dutch general election in The Hague, Netherlands, March 17, 2021. AdโโThe agenda ahead of us is enormous,โ Rutte said in his first reaction to the poll results. โThis shows that the Netherlands trusts the VVD and Mark Rutte to continue in this unprecedented crisis,โ said VVD lawmaker Sophie Hermans. Rutte indicated it would be the obvious partner to talk to first to lay the foundation for a new coalition. Another party on the far-right of the Dutch political spectrum, Forum for Democracy, did better, according to the poll, gaining 6 seats to reach 8.
Voting underway in coronavirus-affected Dutch election
A woman prepares to cast her ballot in ride through polling station for bicycles in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Monday, March 15, 2021. โI think Rutte has done well," said Guido van den Elshout, 72, after voting in the Dutch parliament building in The Hague. The pandemic's ongoing effects were clearly visible in the Dutch capital Amsterdam, where a drive-thru polling station for cars and bicycles opened at a conference center. Far more polling stations will be open on Wednesday, the official date of the election. For Kastelein, the key issues were โthe climate crisis and growing racism but I also think Europe is very important.
Dutch police break up anti-govt protest on eve of election
Dutch riot police kick a man during a demonstration to protest government policies including the curfew, lockdown and coronavirus related restrictions in The Hague, Netherlands, Sunday, March 14, 2021. Thousands of people took part in the rally ahead of three days of voting starting Monday in a general election. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)THE HAGUE โ Dutch police used a water cannon and officers on horseback galloped across a park in The Hague on Sunday to break up a protest against the government and its tough coronavirus lockdown on the eve of three days of voting in the general election. Hague police tweeted that they deployed riot officers to break up the protest after hundreds of people defied repeated calls to go home. A record 37 parties are taking part in the election for the 150 seats in Parliament's lower house.
Int'l court judges award $30M to Congolese warlord's victims
FILE - In this Thursday, Nov. 7, 2019 file photo, Congolese militia commander Bosco Ntaganda enters the courtroom of the International Criminal Court, or ICC, to hear the sentence in his trial in The Hague, Netherlands. International Criminal Court judges on Monday March 8, 2021, awarded $30 million (25.3 million euros) in reparations to victims of crimes for which Congolese warlord Bosco Ntagand was convicted including child soldiers and victims of rape and sexual slavery. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool, File)THE HAGUE โ International Criminal Court judges on Monday awarded $30 million (25.3 million euros) in reparations to victims of crimes for which a Congolese warlord was convicted including child soldiers and victims of rape and sexual slavery. Those eligible for reparations include direct and indirect victims of โcrimes against child soldiers, of rape and sexual slavery, and children born out of rape and sexual slavery,โ the court said in a statement. Judges said they were โcollective reparations with individualized componentsโ for victims, with the number of eligible victims possibly topping 100,000.
ICC launches war crimes probe into Israeli practices
It also raised the possibility of arrest warrants being issued against Israeli officials suspected of war crimes, making it potentially risky to travel abroad. A preliminary probe by Bensouda in 2019 had found a โreasonable basisโ to open a war crimes case. Since joining the court in 2015, they have pushed for a war crimes probe against Israel. The ICC is meant to serve as a court of last resort when countriesโ own judicial systems are unable or unwilling to investigate and prosecute war crimes. Netanyahu was prime minister during the 2014 Gaza war and has been a strong advocate of the settlements.
Dutch bar owners, sex workers protest against virus lockdown
Sex workers protest unequal treatment and stigmatizing during a demonstration in The Hague, Netherlands, Tuesday, March 2, 2021. Stores in one village opened briefly, cafe owners across the Netherlands were putting tables and chairs on their outdoor terraces and sex workers demonstrated outside parliament in protests against the government's tough coronavirus lockdown. Elsewhere, stores in one eastern village opened briefly in the morning and a group of sex workers staged a demonstration and set up a peep show outside parliament in the afternoon. Turnover at the country's accommodation and food services sector shrank by an unprecedented 33.9% in 2020 due to the pandemic and lockdown measures, the national statistics office reported Monday. Bar owners insist that they can reopen their terraces safely by enforcing social distancing and hygiene measures.
Dutch senate approves coronavirus curfew legislation
The government is appealing a ban on the curfew imposed earlier this week by a judge in The Hague. (AP Photo/Mike Corder)THE HAGUE โ Dutch senators late Friday approved hastily drawn up legislation underpinning the country's coronavirus curfew, ensuring that it will remain in force at least until early March despite a court order on Tuesday that it be scrapped. AdA clear majority of lawmakers in the lower house of parliament, including a number of opposition parties, approved the legislation Thursday. โJust before the introduction of the curfew, the water was splashing against the dike,โ he told the appeals panel. AdโIn those circumstances, the Cabinet believed it had to take emergency measures in the form of a curfew,โ Veldhuis said.
Lawyer: Central African Republic soccer chief is innocent
FILE - In this Friday, Jan. 25, 2019 file photo, the chief of Central African Republic's soccer federation Patrice-Edouard Ngaissona stands during his initial appearance before the judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, the Netherlands. The former head of the Central African Republic's soccer federation and an alleged rebel commander known as Rambo are going on trial Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021 at the International Criminal Court charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity. (Koen Van Well/Pool photo via AP, File)THE HAGUE โ The former head of Central African Republic's soccer federation used the popular sport to foster peace and unity in his country and played no role in anti-Muslim atrocities, his lawyer told judges at the International Criminal Court on Thursday. Defense lawyer Geert-Jan Knoops told the three-judge panel in his opening statement that Patrice-Edouard Ngaรฏssona is a victim of a rush to justice by prosecutors. AdKnoops insisted that Ngaรฏssona used his influential position at the head of the soccer federation for good.
Alleged Central African Republic rebels plead not guilty
The men both pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The trial is the first at the global court that focuses on the violence that erupted after the Seleka seized power in the Central African Republic in 2013, forcing President Francois Bozize into exile. AdโA justice void has fueled repeated violence in the Central African Republic, with a new wave of attacks in just the past two months. The Central African Republic government asked the ICC in May 2014 to investigate crimes allegedly committed by both the Seleka and the anti-Balaka. Last month, the first alleged Seleka rebel arrested on an ICC warrant was handed to the court.
British lawyer Karim Khan elected next ICC prosecutor
-FILE- In this Thursday, Feb. 6, 2020, file photo the sun bounces off the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, File)THE HAGUE โ More than 120 countries elected British lawyer Karim Khan on Friday as the next prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, one of the toughest jobs in international law because the tribunal seeks justice for the worldโs worst atrocities -- war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. Khan, who has specialized in international criminal law and international human rights law, was widely seen as the favorite to get the job. He has worked as a prosecutor at the tribunal prosecuting war crimes in former Yugoslavia and crimes against humanity and genocide in Rwanda. Khan is no stranger to the International Criminal Court, known as the ICC, having acted as a defense lawyer for Kenyan Deputy President William Ruto and persuading judges to throw out prosecution charges against his client.