International Criminal Court and The 2003 Invasion of Iraq - Allegations Concerning The Legality of The Conflict

Allegations Concerning The Legality of The Conflict

The prosecutor explained that although the Statute of the International Criminal Court "includes the crime of aggression, it indicates that the Court may not exercise jurisdiction over the crime until a provision has been adopted which defines the crime and sets out the conditions under which the Court may exercise jurisdiction with respect to it (Article 5(2))." Hence, "the International Criminal Court has a mandate to examine the conduct during the conflict, but not whether the decision to engage in armed conflict was legal. As the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, I do not have the mandate to address the arguments on the legality of the use of force or the crime of aggression". The states parties to the ICC may adopt such a definition at a review conference in 2009, but the court will only be able to exercise jurisdiction over acts of aggression committed after this amendment enters into force.