Ukraine conflict sides’ actions may fall within ICC jurisdiction — UN

By -
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay
The hostilities in Ukraine may fall within the International Criminal Court (ICC) jurisdiction, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said, adding that she considered it “a real possibility," reports Itar-Tass.
“Both sides currently use heavy weapons against civilians, and this plane [Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 plane, flight MH17 that crashed in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region on July 17 was downed in an attack against civilians,” Pilay said.
According to her, the use of such weapons against civilians can be regarded as the “violation of international humanitarian law.
“When this happens, the international system of criminal justice should deal with it. Some counties have universal jurisdiction, and they can launch these proceedings,” the UN commissioner said.
Pillay said on Monday, releasing a new report on the situation in Ukraine that “already increasing numbers of people are being killed with serious damage to civilian infrastructure, which - depending on circumstances - could amount to violations of international humanitarian law,” she said. 
“The fighting must stop.”
On July 23, the International Committee of the Red Cross, ICRC, said that the developments in the east of Ukraine acquired the internal armed conflict nature. 
The qualification of the conflict thus allows the application of the norms of international humanitarian law, and in case of its serious violations the actions of the conflict sides may be qualified as war crimes, and the crime suspects may also be brought before the International Criminal Court.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

UBTH @50: Obaseki hails institution’s role in strengthening Edo healthcare

By -
Image
(Nigeria) Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State, has commended the staff and management of the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, UBTH, for their unwavering commitment, dedication, and hard work in providing high-quality healthcare services to the people of Edo State and Nigeria in the past fifty years. Obaseki, at a dinner organized in honour of the Committee of Chief Medical Directors of Nigeria, at the Government House, Benin City, reassured the government’s continuous partnership and collaboration with the federal government-owned health institution to strengthen the health system and ensure quality health delivery to Edo people. The governor, who was represented by his deputy, Philip Shaibu, reeled out the gains of the government’s reforms in the health sector, commending the medical centre for bolstering the government’s efforts at transforming Edo State into a health hub. He said, "We came into a wilderness where you have to cut a part for yourself and fix it. We held
Read more

NBC has no powers to impose fine on broadcast stations --Court

By -
Image
(Nigeria) The National Broadcasting Commission, NBC, has been restrained by a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, from imposing fines on broadcast stations in the country. Trial judge in the matter, Justice James Omotosho also set aside the N500,000 fines imposed on March 1, 2019, on each of 45 broadcast stations. The court made the orders in its judgment a suit by the Incorporated Trustees of Media Rights Agenda, MRA, which had sued the NBC. Justice Omotosho held that the NBC, not being a court of law, had no power to impose sanctions as punishment on broadcast stations. The court further held that the Nigeria Broadcasting Code, which gives the commission the power to impose sanction, is in conflict with Section 6 of the Constitution that vested judicial power in the court of law. He said the court would not sit idle and watch a body imposing fine arbitrarily without recourse to the law. He said that the commission did not comply with the law when it sat as a complainant and at
Read more