Prosecutor in The Hague investigating Russia’s atrocities in Ukraine – statement

The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court in The Hague Karim Asad Ahmad Khan QC (UK) is investigating Russia's crimes against Ukraine. He describes the actions of the occupier as war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The information comes from a statement by Karim Khan.

"I am convinced that there are reasonable grounds to believe that both war crimes and crimes against humanity were committed in Ukraine concerning events that have already been assessed during the Office's preliminary examination. Given the escalation of the conflict in recent days, I also intend the investigation to cover any new alleged crimes under the jurisdiction of my Office committed by any party to the conflict in any part of Ukraine", the prosecutor said.

The prosecutor noted that he was closely monitoring the situation in Ukraine and called for compliance with international humanitarian law.

"I have already instructed my team to explore all possibilities to preserve evidence. The next step is to continue the process of seeking and obtaining permission from the Pre-Trial Chamber to open an investigation. An alternative way in the Statute that could further expedite the case to transfer the situation to the ISS member state to my office, which will allow us to actively and immediately start independent and objective investigations of the Office, "Karim Khan added.