Reports of war crimes by Russian forces in Ukraine are causing international alarm, even as Russia denies the allegations.
Hundreds of bodies were discovered in mass graves and strewn on streets and buildings in Bucha, a town outside of Kyiv that was recently wrested from Russian forces. Some of the bodies had their wrists bound. Officials in Ukraine allege Russian forces retreating from the town shot civilians as they left, though Russian officials deny the charge.
Several world leaders, including Canada and the United States, have promised support to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in its investigation into war crimes in Ukraine.
But what constitutes a war crime?
According to the United Nations (UN), a war crime is a serious breach of international law committed against civilians or “enemy combatants” during an international or domestic armed conflict.
In contrast with genocide and crimes against humanity, war crimes have to occur in the context of armed conflict, both domestically and internationally.
War crimes can be committed against either combatants or non-combatants, depending on the type of crime, the UN says.
“In international armed conflicts, victims include wounded and sick members of armed forces in the field and at sea, prisoners of war and civilian persons,” it outlines.
“In the case of non-international armed conflicts, protection is afforded to persons taking no active part in the hostilities, including members of armed forces who have laid down their arms and those placed ‘hors de combat’ by sickness, wounds, detention, or any other cause.”
The International Criminal Court (ICC) is the principal body that can hold individuals responsible for war crimes. It was founded in 1988 by a treaty known as the Rome Statute, which lays out actions that can be tried as war crimes, including deliberate killings, torture, and intentional attacks on civilians.
According to the book, A World History of War Crimes: From Antiquity to the Present by Michael Bryant, the Nuremberg war crimes trials after the Second World War is where the modern definition of war crimes started and when allied governments took unprecedented action to hold parties accountable.
The London Charter was the foundational document of the trials, setting forth all of the charges against the Nazis.
War crimes are investigated the same way as all criminal activity, by collecting evidence through witnesses, forensics, DNA, and autopsies. It needs to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt that individuals knowingly committed the crime.
However, the ICC does not have its own police force or military presence, and is reliant on countries to hand over their own citizens for prosecution. This barrier makes it difficult to investigate high-level officials, much less a head of state.
The very first file at the ICC for war crimes in Sudan's Darfur region began this week, almost 20 years after the alleged crimes occurred.
According to a press release from the ICC, Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman (also known as "Ali Kushayb"), the suspected former leader of the pro-Government Janjaweed militia, is accused of 31 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Darfur between August 2003 and "at least April 2004."
Ousted former president of Sudan, Omar al-Bashir, is also facing Darfur-related genocide and war crimes charges at the ICC but has so far evaded arrest. He is currently in custody in Sudan, following his removal from power in 2019.
“The International Criminal Court … didn't have access to the field for forever as Sudan did not cooperate. So until very recently, when Omar Bashir, the president that was actually accused of genocide and crimes against humanity was still in power and there was not much they could do,” Fannie Lafontaine, Canada Research Chair on International Criminal Justice and Human Rights, told CTV’s Your Morning on Thursday.
“The prosecutor hibernated the investigation because there was no support from Sudan, but also not from major states like the United States.”
Lafontaine pointed out that an unprecedented number of investigative parties from various countries are already in the field in Ukraine.
On March 28, Canada’s Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino announced that RCMP officers would be dispatched to support the ICC’s efforts. The Canadian team will assist in collecting and preserving evidence, and interviewing witnesses.
While investigating war crimes is typically very complicated, especially linking atrocities to the individuals most responsible, Lafontaine says that the situation in Ukraine is different.
She said that other countries’ involvement could “accelerate quite a bit the process of collecting the evidence.”
While arrest warrants take a long time, the evidence collection in Ukraine “has a very different sort of scenario going on,” she said.
Lafontaine has clarified that foreign fighters, from countries such as Canada, who join volunteer battalions in Ukraine will be categorized as combatants instead of civilians. That means, if they are killed in combat, their deaths wouldn’t be considered war crimes.
Similarly, their actions with the Ukrainian military would not constitute war crimes, as long as they don’t hurt civilians or violate other parts of the Rome Statute.
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
A London man has become the first person in Canada to receive a robotic assisted surgery on his spine. Dave Myeh suffered from debilitating, chronic back pain that led to sciatica in his right now and extreme pain in his lower back.
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
The federal government says new capital gains tax changes will only affect the rich, but some realtors say they are hearing from 'middle-class' cottage owners who worry they may have to sell before the rules come into effect on June 25.
Mounties on Vancouver Island have confirmed that two bodies recovered by United States authorities earlier this week are those of a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia.
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Jury selection is set to start today for the trial of a Winnipeg man accused of killing four women.
Nine-year-old Carter Vigh was having a great day last July 11, visiting a waterpark, enjoying a picnic lunch and playing soccer with other kids at a day camp run by his mother, Amber Vigh.
A dozen mayors from around Metro Vancouver say federal Attorney General and Justice Minister Arif Virani should deny parole for notorious B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton, and reassess the parole and sentencing system for 'prolific offenders and mass murderers.'
Two military horses that bolted and ran miles through the streets of London after being spooked by construction noise and tossing their riders were in a serious condition and required operations, a British government official said Thursday.
A Sydney bishop who was stabbed repeatedly in an alleged extremist attack blamed on a teenager has backed X Corp. owner Elon Musk's legal bid to overturn an Australian ban on sharing graphic video of the attack on social media.
The first cargo ship passed through a newly opened deep-water channel in Baltimore on Thursday after being stuck in the harbour since the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed four weeks ago.
A reluctant Donald Trump returned to a New York City courtroom Thursday as his hush money trial resumed at the same time that the U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments in Washington over whether he should be immune from prosecution for actions he took during his time as president.
A ship travelling in the Gulf of Aden came under attack Thursday, officials said, the latest assault likely carried out by Yemen's Houthi rebels over Israel's ongoing war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Iran's judiciary confirmed the death sentence of well-known Iranian rapper Toomaj Salehi but added that he is entitled to a sentence reduction, state media reported on Thursday.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
A London man has become the first person in Canada to receive a robotic assisted surgery on his spine. Dave Myeh suffered from debilitating, chronic back pain that led to sciatica in his right now and extreme pain in his lower back.
Ontario is still playing catch up on routine vaccinations that many children missed during the pandemic and public health officials are warning that it could take years to solve the problem.
Nine-year-old Carter Vigh was having a great day last July 11, visiting a waterpark, enjoying a picnic lunch and playing soccer with other kids at a day camp run by his mother, Amber Vigh.
China launched a three-member crew to its orbiting space station on Thursday as part of its ambitious program that aims to put astronauts on the moon by 2030.
U.S. President Joe Biden signed legislation Wednesday that could ban TikTok in the U.S. while his campaign has embraced the platform and tried to work with influencers.
A new paper says a giant salmon that lived five million years ago in the coastal waters of the Pacific Northwest used tusk-like spikes as defense mechanisms and for building nests to spawn.
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
In the last year, Tim Hortons has treated cottaging Canadians to a boat drivethru, revived its beloved Dutchie doughnut and launched flatbread pizzas. But perhaps its biggest surprise will come this summer.
The B.C. woman convicted of killing Reena Virk described the TV series dramatizing the notorious 1997 murder as disrespectful to the victim and her family.
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
Boeing said Wednesday that it lost US$355 million on falling revenue in the first quarter, another sign of the crisis gripping the aircraft manufacturer as it faces increasing scrutiny over the safety of its planes and accusations of shoddy work from a growing number of whistleblowers.
New condo sales in the Toronto region dropped to the lowest quarterly total since the financial crisis in 2009 amid high interest rates and affordability issues, a new report has found.
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
A Polish pilot proposed to his flight attendant girlfriend during a flight from Warsaw to Krakow, and she said yes.
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
We feel good about ourselves and we feel we can go in there and win a game," Bowness said.
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
A made-in-China electric vehicle will hit North American dealers this summer offering power and efficiency similar to the Tesla Model Y, the world's best-selling EV, but for about US$8,000 less.
Tesla's first-quarter net income plummeted 55 per cent as falling global sales and price cuts sliced into the electric vehicle maker's revenue and profit margins.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.
Mounties on Vancouver Island have confirmed that two bodies recovered by United States authorities earlier this week are those of a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia.
The yo-yoing gas prices in B.C.'s Lower mainland continues with fuel jumping nine cents Thursday morning.
A dozen mayors from around Metro Vancouver say federal Attorney General and Justice Minister Arif Virani should deny parole for notorious B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton, and reassess the parole and sentencing system for 'prolific offenders and mass murderers.'
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
Toronto police say the homicide unit is investigating after a man was reportedly pushed to his death from a balcony downtown late Wednesday night.
Ontario is still playing catch up on routine vaccinations that many children missed during the pandemic and public health officials are warning that it could take years to solve the problem.
Former Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi is expected to be the centre of attention as the first debate in the Alberta NDP leadership race is held Thursday night.
Ten things happening around Calgary this weekend.
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
It's another headache for drivers who have a vehicle stolen, what to do if they want to sell after their stolen vehicle was damaged and then recovered.
Many thought they had seen the final curtain call at Troyes Cinema, located on Garrison Petawawa, when the movie theatre closed in 2022.
State and Main is getting ready to celebrate Mother’s Day through its third annual For Mom, For Women campaign this May.
A mother and daughter are speaking out after a Quebec man was sentenced to house arrest for years of domestic abuse. They were both physically assaulted by the mother's ex-partner and say the offender got off with another light sentence.
Speaking to CTV News, some Montreal drivers said they were in favour of the new measure and said they'd like to see Quebec follow suit.
A major operation rallying 25 police forces across Quebec has led to the arrest of 40 alleged sex offenders considered at high risk of reoffending.
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Local multilingual radio station My Radio 580 will broadcast the Edmonton Elks' home games, the club announced Thursday.
After three straight days with highs of 19 C and 20 C highs, we'll see some cooler air settle in for today and Friday.
New Brunswick RCMP says officers rescued three people from alleged human trafficking in Moncton, arresting an 18-year-old woman in the process.
Community members gathered at a Bedford, N.S., mosque for Ahmad Al Marrach — a 16-year-old murder victim — for his funeral on Wednesday.
Newfoundland and Labrador's Justice Minister has written to his federal counterpart to ask for changes to the Criminal Code relating to bail and detention in cases of intimate partner violence.
Jury selection is set to start today for the trial of a Winnipeg man accused of killing four women.
The Manitoba RCMP is set to make an announcement on Thursday regarding a double homicide in the province.
A new fight is gearing up at city hall over Lemay Forest.
The City of Regina has decided to not reduce speed limits in the Cathedral area for the time being.
Many Saskatchewan residents have been receiving unsolicited political text messages of the Sask. Party taking aim at the Saskatchewan NDP and their leader Carla Beck. Media experts say texting can be an effective campaign tool, but parties run the risk of annoying some voters.
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
Three dogs died in the blaze.
A Waterloo, Ont. teacher says she’s frustrated after learning the arthritis medication she depends on is no longer covered under her benefits plan and she'll have to switch pharmacies to avoid paying out of pocket.
A Waterloo man needed to be taken away by air ambulance following a crash on King Street.
A Saskatchewan woman who was taken for an involuntary mental health assessment is entitled to find out who had her committed, a provincial court judge has ruled.
Many Saskatchewan residents have been receiving unsolicited political text messages of the Sask. Party taking aim at the Saskatchewan NDP and their leader Carla Beck. Media experts say texting can be an effective campaign tool, but parties run the risk of annoying some voters.
International aircraft giant Boeing has made a multi-million dollar commitment to the Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technology (SIIT) to help address shortages in the aviation industry.
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
A serious crash involving two vehicles has closed Highway 101 in the Timmins area since 1 a.m., police say.
Damage is estimated at $50,000 after a trailer parked in a St. Thomas driveway caught fire. Around 8:30 a.m. Thursday, first responders received multiple 911 calls reporting a large plume of smoke and flames from a camping trailer.
A London man has become the first person in Canada to receive a robotic assisted surgery on his spine. Dave Myeh suffered from debilitating, chronic back pain that led to sciatica in his right now and extreme pain in his lower back.
The London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) Auxiliary is celebrating 100 years of service. Since 1999, the Auxiliary has made contributions, totaling over $10 million towards the hospital's critical needs.
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Reports indicate Honda is retooling its assembly plant in Alliston to produce fully electric vehicles.
Instructors from the United Kingdom College of Policing brought the victim support instructors to Barrie.
A snake habitat on Pelee Island will be restored. Through a multi-partner collaboration, conservation work on Pelee Island will continue through 2026.
A 911 hang-up call has led to the arrest of two people in Chatham-Kent. Just after 6:30 a.m. on Wednesday, officers responded to an address on Bloomfield Road for the hang-up call.
A Windsor man convicted in a violent murder 20 years ago was successful in his ‘faint hope’ bid for an early chance at freedom after a jury agreed he should be given the chance to apply for early parole eligibility.
Mounties on Vancouver Island have confirmed that two bodies recovered by United States authorities earlier this week are those of a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
The B.C. woman convicted of killing Reena Virk described the TV series dramatizing the notorious 1997 murder as disrespectful to the victim and her family.
An emaciated dachshund is now recovering thanks to a Good Samaritan who found the pup near a biking trail in Kelowna, according to the BC SPCA.
Search and rescue crews have been called in after a vehicle belonging to a missing senior was located near a rural intersection outside of Kelowna Tuesday.
Major crime detectives in British Columbia are investigating a suspected homicide after a body was found in a remote area southeast Kelowna over the weekend.
It’s not even May 1 and the fire risk for southern Alberta is already alarming.
Whoop-Up Days is still four months away, but applications to be in this year’s parade are now open.
Lethbridge has added 28 physicians over the past year, according to a quarterly report published by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta.
Some members of the Garden River First Nation are demanding answers regarding the disbursement of the Robinson-Huron Treaty settlement funds.
The Ontario Provincial Police, in partnership with the Treaty Three Police Service, have charged a suspect with murder following a homicide in a remote northwestern Ontario community.
A 15-year-old in Sault Ste. Marie has been charged following an incident on Bay Street on Tuesday.
A Newfoundland-made vodka has been named one of the world’s best by judges at this year’s World Vodka Awards.
Uber Technologies Inc. says it has brought its ridesharing platform to Newfoundland and Labrador.
Newfoundlander Christian Sparkes has shot several films around his home province, but with his new psychological thriller 'The King Tide' he saw an opportunity to wander into one unique town that had eluded him over the years.
The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at CTV News. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us.
