The Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine recently reported that Russian authorities have committed a wide range of violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law in various regions of Ukraine, and many of these amount to war crimes.
The war crimes include wilful killings, attacks on civilians and energy-related infrastructure, wilful killings, unlawful confinement, torture, rape and other sexual violence, as well as unlawful transfers and deportations of children.
What are the limitations of international justice in bringing suspected war criminals to trial? And what can the practical outcomes of any war crimes investigations be for everyday citizens who have been the victims of crime?
In seeking to answer these questions, LSJ spoke to Dr Jacqueline McAllister, an expert in international relations, human rights and civil wars. Since 2014, McAllister has been Associate Professor of Political Science at Kenyon College in Ohio. Her research into the role and effectiveness of international justice efforts in ongoing conflicts has taken her from the Balkans to Nigeria. McAllister’s work has featured in leading scholarly journals and foreign policy magazines, and she has appeared as a guest on global podcasts and panels. McAllister has also served as an expert panellist at a UN-sponsored conference on the legacy of the Yugoslav Tribunal. Next year, she will be working for the US Department of State’s Office of Global Criminal Justice.
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War crimes and international justice: what hope for Ukraine?
