The International Criminal Court can investigate crimes committed by anyone throughout the territory of Ukraine

The International Criminal Court (ICC) gained jurisdiction over the entire territory of Ukraine and had the right to investigate crimes committed by anyone, not just Russians, starting in 2015.

This was stated by the spokesman of ICC Fadi el Abdala answering the questions of Ukrainian journalists, the correspondent of Babel reports.

"It is about acts committed on the territory of Ukraine. And it doesnʼt matter who exactly committed the crime. If you look at the statements of the previous prosecutor and the current prosecutor, they always mention all sides of the conflict, they send messages and warnings and guarantee that the law will be applied impartially," the spokesman emphasized.

He was then asked how the court would consider the fact that Ukraine had ratified the Rome Statute, but with a temporary provision (Article 124), according to which ICC would not have jurisdiction under the article on war crimes against Ukrainian citizens for seven years.

"Judges will decide when and if this question is brought before them. So let me not speculate on this topic at this stage,” replied Fadi el Abdala.

• On August 24, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky signed the law on the ratification of the Rome Statute. The Rome Statute is an international treaty that became the basis for the creation of ICC and defined the list of crimes that the court has the right to investigate: war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and crimes of aggression.

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