The ICC Prosecutor Investigates Alleged US Servicemen’s Crimes in Afghanistan, the US Administration Retaliates Executive Order 13928 and the Question of its Legality

Abstract

The factual basis for this assertion was the findings of the US Senate Select Committee on Intelligence,5 of the US Senate Armed Services Committee, and of the US Department of Defense. On 12 April 2019, Pre-Trial Chamber (PTC) II denied the request because “the current circumstances of the situation in Afghanistan are such as to make the prospects for a successful investigation and prosecution extremely limited”.6 The Prosecutor successfully appealed. On 5 March 2020, the ICC Appeals Chamber effectively quashed the PTC II decision and permitted that an investigation be opened.