While the term ‘international crimes; may be used politically and colloquially in a variety of ways, it is a legal term in international law which refers to four main categories of crimes that are considered to be particularly grave: Genocide, Crimes Against Humanity, War Crimes, and the Crime of Aggression.
Here we focus on the first three of those crimes which are considered to be among the most serious human rights violations, warrant global concern, and are punishable internationally, or by any state, no matter where the crimes took place.
The term ‘mass atrocity crime’ can also be used to refer to any of the three international crimes: genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes. While it has no formal legal definition, this term is useful when international crimes are underway, but consensus on the exact character of the human rights violations is still unclear.
To learn more about how these crimes are prosecuted, see International Criminal Court
Genocide
The Polish lawyer, Raphael Lemkin, coined the term genocide in 1944 to describe the killing of nation, race, or ethnic group. This concept was written into international law through the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Genocide (1948). The definition describes genocide as an “intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group.” The convention contains both a physical (substantive) element of genocide and a mental element (intent). The physical element can include any of the following acts:
- Killing member of the group;
- Causing serious bodily or mental harm to group members;
- Deliberately inflicting on the group “conditions of life” intended to physically destroy the group in whole or part;
- Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;
- Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.
To be genocide, these physical acts must be committed intentionally by the perpetrator(s) to physically destroy the targeted group. Importantly, the crime of genocide can take place during war or in times of peace. The Genocide Convention obligates states to not commit genocide, to prevent genocide and punish to punish genocide.
1995 Bosnian Genocide
In July of 1995, Bosnian-Serb forces, led by Serb President Slobodan Milošević, Bosnian-Serb President Radovan Karadžić, and Commander Ratko Mladić, committed genocide against Bosnian Muslims (Bosniaks) in Srebrenica. The International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) ruled that the crimes committed in Srebrenica were genocide.
Bosnian-Serb forces forcibly displaced thousands of civilians out of Srebrenica, condensed nearly 30,000 of them into inhumane facilities in Potočari, and eventually usurped the control of the area that was being protected by United Nations “DutchBat” peace forces in Potočari. Mladić and his forces intentionally deceived thousands of desperate Bosnian civilians in their captivity, inviting them to board buses to escape the Potočari compound. In reality, Mladić’s forces were separating women, children, and the elderly from men and boys. This was a coordinated plan to separate able-bodied men and boys from their families, temporarily detain them in Bratunac, and then kill them. The Bosnian Serb military and police forces acting under Mladić murdered more than 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys, burying in mass graves. They also forcibly displaced more than 25,000 Bosnian Muslim women, children, and elderly, separating them from their homes and families. Many of whom were physically abused and raped.
To learn more about the Bosnian Genocide, visit:
The Holocaust
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum describes the Holocaust (1933-1945) as “the systematic, state-sponsored persecution and murder of six million European Jews by the Nazi German regime and its allies and collaborators.” The Holocaust was an evolving process with Antisemitism, the hatred or prejudice against Jews, at its root. Nazi Germany’s persecution of Jews became more and more radicalized culminating in genocide. These practices included but were not limited to brutal mistreatment, deadly living conditions in ghettos and concentration camps, mass shootings and gassings, and the design of organized killing centers. The Holocaust impacted nearly the entire European Jewish population and killed nearly two of three European Jews.
In addition to perpetrating the Holocaust, Nazi Germany also persecuted and murdered millions of other victims including political opponents and dissenters, Roma, gay and bisexual men, Jehovah’s Witnesses, people with disabilities, Black people in Germany, and other groups.
Visit the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum website to learn more about the Holocaust, remember survivors and victims, and learn how to confront genocide and antisemitism.
Crimes Against Humanity
Article 7 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court defines crimes against humanity as any of the following acts committed as part of “a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack.”
- Murder
- Extermination
- Enslavement
- Forced population transfer
- Imprisonment or other forms of “deprivation of liberty” that violate international law
- Torture
- Sexual violence
- Persecution
- Enforced disappearance
- Apartheid
- And other inhumane acts
Any of these acts can be a crime against humanity if 1) they are committed as part of a geographically widespread or numerically large-scale, or systematic attack against civilians; and 2) they are planned or committed to advance state or organizational policy.
Like genocide, crimes against humanity can take place during peacetime or war. Unlike genocide, crimes against humanity are not identity- specific. They target civilians at large and not based on their membership in a specific national, ethnic, racial, or religious group.
War Crimes
War has rules. Warring parties must obey international human rights law (which applies all the time) and international humanitarian law (which regulates how wars are fought and who must be protected during armed conflict). War crimes are violations of international humanitarian law that are specifically committed during armed conflict, international or not. War crimes refer to a wide variety of violent acts that become criminal when they are committed against people who should be protected during war.
The Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their optional protocols describe the rules of war. They are often summarized into two core principles.
Protect those not participating in hostilities, also known as “non-combatants.” Non-combatants include civilians, prisoners of war, incapacitated combatants, medical personnel, journalists, humanitarian aid workers and others not participating in the fight.
Armed forces must not use methods of means of warfare that are indiscriminate (could harm protected people or can’t distinguish between civilians and soldiers) or cause unnecessary and excessive suffering, like poisonous gases or chemical weapons.
In short, warring parties must distinguish between civilians and combatants and must spare the civilian population, their property, and those things upon which civilian life depends, like access to food and water.
Article 8 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court includes a comprehensive list of war crimes, including grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions, which include:
- Wilful killing
- Torture or inhumane treatment
- Willfully causing great suffering or serious injury
- Extensive destruction of property not justified by military necessity
- Willfully depriving a prisoner of war of their rights to a fair and regular trial
- Unlawful deportation, transfer, or confinement
- Taking of hostages
- Use of chemical weapons
- Perfidy
2013 Ghouta Attack in Syria
The 2013 chemical weapons attack by the armed forces of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad against the population of Ghouta was both a war crime and a crime against humanity. In addition to the unlawful use of chemical weapons on the streets of Syria, Al-Assaad also targeted civilians in schools, hospitals, and humanitarian aid hubs, all of which are protected by international law. These mass attacks on Syrians opposed to al-Assaad’s rule were conducted to quell dissent to the Al-Assaad regime, but the indiscriminate use of chemical weapons inflicted immense physical harm, mental distress, and death upon civilians. Human Rights Watch concluded that the operation was government-directed, using evidence of weapons-grade chemical agents and nearby launching sites. The attacks were politically motivated, intentional, and indiscriminate, killing hundreds of civilians, including children.
What is “ethnic cleansing”?
The 1994 Commission of Experts established by UN Security Council Resolution 780 defined ethnic cleansing as “rendering an area ethnically homogeneous by using force or intimidation to remove persons of given groups from an area.” Ethnic cleansing is a political term rather than a legal term. Ethnic cleansing is prohibited and can be prosecuted as part of genocide, a crime against humanity, or a war crime depending on the purpose and circumstances.
How are international crimes prosecuted?
The enforcement of international law depends on sovereign states who may utilize national courts to prosecute perpetrators or create special courts and tribunals independently or in cooperation with the United Nations. The International Criminal Court was created to prosecute the perpetrators of international crimes that involve their State Members. Visit 'International Criminal Court' to learn more.