Monthly News Updates: Domestic Prosecution of International Crimes – February 2022
By: Pauline Pfaff, Junior Research Associate, PILPG-NL
February saw developments in the domestic prosecution of international crimes, for example in relation to crimes committed during the Dutch colonial past and civil wars in the Americas. The following post provides an overview of the key developments in the domestic prosecution of international crimes worldwide.
EUROPE
Netherlands | Trial against Afghan-Dutch national for war crimes in Afghanistan closes
The District Court of The Hague closed the trial against Abdul Razzaq Rafief for war crimes committed in the 1980s. Rafief has Afghan-Dutch dual citizenship and was tried under the principle of universal jurisdiction. The 76-year old allegedly oversaw, as a top commander, the abuse and torture of prisoners at the Pul-e-Charkhi prison in Kabul. The prosecution requested a 12-year prison sentence for Rafief. The judges will deliver their decision on April 14, 2022. [February 22, 2022]
Netherlands | Prime Minister Rutte apologizes to Indonesia for war crimes during war of independence 1945-1949
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte officially apologized to Indonesia and its citizens for the Dutch army’s excessive use of force during the 1945-1949 Indonesian war of independence. The apology follows an extensive historical review undertaken by three historical research institutes that contradicted the long-held official view that Dutch troops only sporadically engaged in violence to retain control of its former colony. [February 17, 2022]
France | Court of Cassation closes investigation into 1994 crash of the Rwandan presidential plane
The French Court of Cassation officially terminated the probe into the crash of the Rwandan presidential plane . Then-president of Rwanda, Juvenal Habyarimana, and Burundian President Cyprien Ntaryamira died in the crash on April 6, 1994. The incident played a crucial role in the onset of the Rwandan genocide. Families of the French flight crew first brought the case to a French court in 1998. [February 16, 2022]
Bosnia and Herzegovina | Court charges nine former Bosnian Serb Fighters with crimes against humanity
The Bosnian state court confirmed charges of crimes against humanity against nine former Bosnian Serb soldiers and policemen. The defendants allegedly participated in a mass killing in the village of Zijemlje in 1992. During the attack, approximately 100 Bosniaks died, including several children. [February 9, 2022]
France | National Assembly adopts bill to allow extraterritorial jurisdiction over international crimes in Syrian war
The French National Assembly passed a bill which allows for judicial cooperation with the United Nations International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism (IIIM) for Syria. The government is also prepared to propose legislation enabling French courts to prosecute individuals for international crimes which took place in Syria. The Senate’s approval on the initial bill is pending. [February 9, 2022]
Germany | Court charges woman with war crimes against Yazidis
A court in Frankfurt charged German national Jalda A. with crimes against humanity, war crimes, and aiding and abetting genocide. The woman allegedly traveled to Syria in 2014 to marry an ISIS fighter. The couple allegedly enslaved and abused a Yazidi individual. [February 9, 2022]
Netherlands | Court sets aside amnesty considerations in Suriname war crimes case
A court in The Hague prolonged the pre-trial detention of 55-year old Dutch former army member Abdoel L. The defendant allegedly perpetrated war crimes during the Suriname civil war in 1987. The charges include the murder of several individuals. In its decision, the court rejected the defendant’s claim of amnesty under Surinamese law. It argued that in exceptional cases Dutch courts may forego foreign amnesty and that the severity of the alleged crimes warrants such an exception. [February 7, 2022]
Switzerland | Attorney General ready to try Algerian general for war crimes and crimes against humanity
Following more than 10 years of investigations, the Swiss Office of the Attorney General completed its preliminary hearings in the case against General Khaled Nezzar. The case may now proceed to trial before the Federal Criminal Court. Nezzar allegedly committed war crimes and crimes against humanity during the onset of the Algerian civil war. At the time, he was a leader of the military junta and Minister of Defense. [February 8, 2022]
THE AMERICAS
El Salvador | Forensic experts exhume remains of at least 16 victims of El Mozote Massacre
A team of forensic experts exhumed two mass graves in the northeast of El Salvador. They found the remains of at least 16 victims, mainly children, and are working on identifying them based on DNA analysis. The individuals are likely the victims of a massacre committed around El Mozote by El Salvadorian soldiers during the 1980-1992 civil war. [February 14, 2022]
Guatemala | Authorities detain nine former soldiers and militia members suspected of participation in 1982 massacre
Guatemalan prosecutors announced that nine former soldiers and militia members suspected of crimes against humanity are in detention. The individuals allegedly participated in the massacre of 25 civilians in the village of Pacoj on June 29, 1982. The incident took place during the 1960-1996 Guatemalan civil war. [February 2, 2022]
United States of America | Department of Justice rejects use of testimony given under torture in Guantánamo Trials
The US Department of Justice rejected the use of statements given during C.I.A. interrogations before the military commission trying Guantánamo Bay detainees. C.I.A interrogation techniques reportedly included torture. The statement clearly negates retired chief prosecutor Brigadier General Mark S. Martin’s proposed interpretation that, under certain circumstances, such testimony may be used in pretrial proceedings. [February 1, 2022]