This is welcome news as this is what the international civil society expects
from the ICC. The US administration has long been using its influence over
global bodies to the extent that it sees itself an "exceptional" nation. Now the
Hague intends to prove that unlike other international bodies such as the UN
Security Council or the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) this is not
the case with the ICC, and that even if Washington moves to position itself in
direct opposition not just to the investigations, but the court itself, it won’t
be able to stop justice from being served to the long-suffering people of
Afghanistan.
Still, that didn’t stop US National Security Adviser John Bolton from saying
that the US will not only refuse to cooperate with the ICC, but that "for all
intents and purposes, the ICC is already dead to us.” Bolton is suggesting that
the US will block any judges and prosecutors from entering the US, freeze any
ICC funds in the US financial system, and impose sanctions against the ICC and
its officials!
The US has long resisted ICC oversight of its myriad war crimes and misdeeds,
and has long insisted that Americans are immune from ICC prosecution. This has
tended to work in the past, as the ICC has so far not made any serious moves
against any US citizens. Not anymore, as things have changed and justice is no
longer a luxury. Under International Law, therefore, the ICC has the power and
authority to prosecute Americans committing war crimes not just in Afghanistan,
but in Iraq, Syria and Yemen as well.
It is under the same international norms that the International Criminal Court
has firmly dismissed the threat of sanctions against it by Bolton in case it
probes US war crimes in Afghanistan, declaring that it will continue its work
"undeterred.”
"The ICC, as a court of law, will continue to do its work undeterred, in
accordance with those principles and the overarching idea of the rule of law,”
the ICC announced in a Tuesday statement, a day after Bolton used bullying
rhetoric against the UN-backed tribunal in The Hague.
The international court has further insisted that it is an independent and
impartial institution with the backing of 123 nations, and that it would not be
intimidated or dissuaded from its global task.
ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda is right to announce that there is a "reasonable
basis to believe” war crimes and crimes against humanity have been committed in
Afghanistan and that all sides in the 17-year-old conflict would be inspected,
including members of the US military and its CIA spying network.
Washington has refused to ratify the Rome Treaty that established the ICC. The
US has adopted the so-called American Services-Members "Protection Act” -
nicknamed The Hague Invasion Act - which authorizes the use of any means
necessary to free any American personnel held by the court. But that’s not
enough to justify any ICC backpedal from its rightful position.
Further still, the attack by Bolton against the ICC is not only in direct
contradiction to the principle of accountability for war crimes, but reinforces
the US administration’s repugnant policy of exceptionalism, where it demands
adherence to International Law by all countries, except itself. The US
dministration’s threat to criminally prosecute and sanction International
Criminal Court judges and prosecutors is straight out of an authoritarian
playbook. Yet, those who believe that this criminal and autocratic rule of the
White House started under Donald Trump need to remember President Obama's
statements. But still, this conceited belief in exceptionalism has always been
present in the minds and actions of the US presidents ever since late World War
II.
Taken together, delivering justice to the victims of America’s longest war in
history will help to facilitate the peace process in Afghanistan. This is their
basic human right and demand and it must be respected by the US which keeps
telling us that it cares about international norms and human rights. The ICC
should also investigate the Israeli regime’s crimes against humanity in occupied
Palestine, because like its American patrons, the usurper regime of Israel is
not above International Law either.
Per usual, the ongoing US-led war in Afghanistan has only brought death and
destruction to the Afghan people. The war has been a disastrous failure and it
is going really badly. By prosecuting those who have committed war crimes, the
ICC can force the US to change its strategy and show some respect for justice
and accountability outside its borders or simply leave Afghanistan. This way, it
can also pave the way for national reconciliation and an international effort to
end the protracted conflict.
After all, there is no grandiose purpose to having US military forces operating
in Afghanistan. People like Bolton who favor an escalation of the war ought to
own up to its heavy costs and bloody consequences. Of course, none of this is
likely to be the case as long as the US commanders pursue their strategy of bomb
and apologize (and in many cases bomb even with no apology), while garrisoning
the planet and fighting open-ended wars on not only Afghan but global frontiers.
Instead of fuelling global outrage for their illicit wars and occupations, the
warmongers in Washington would be better off and safer, if they come to their
senses, cooperate with the ICC and end their failed mission in Afghanistan.
Threatening the ICC in a bid to continue war crimes would never bring the White
House losers a victory in Afghanistan the same way it hasn't thus far.
Source:FNA