Interview

A view of a flooded area on June 10, 2023 in Kherson, Ukraine after the Kakhovka dam and hydroelectric power plant, which sit on the Dnipro river in the southern Kherson region, were destroyed, forcing downstream communities to evacuate due to risk of flooding. © Roman Pilipey/Getty Images

Ukraine: Prosecuting Ecocide

Pursuing those responsible for this crime would increase awareness and accountability, as well as having a significant and international impact.

4 Jul 23

Forensic police exhume bodies from unidentified makeshift graves at the Pishanske cemetery on September 23, 2022 in Izium, Ukraine. A total of 447 bodies was exhumed from the gravesite, including 22 soldiers and 5 children, and the bodies will be examined for possible war crimes. © Paula Bronstein/Getty Images

Ukraine: Prosecuting War Crimes in Civilian Courts

Are such trials compatible with international humanitarian law?

16 May 23

In the border town of Kozacha Lopan, in the Kharkiv region, police discovered a jail that they believe Russian soldiers used as a torture chamber. © Paula Bronstein/Getty Images

Ukraine: Investigating Torture

As criminal cases mount, a pattern emerges as to who was targeted for inhumane treatment.

9 May 23

International Criminal Court building in The Hague, Netherlands. © United Nations Photo/Creative Commons

Why Has Ukraine Not Ratified the Rome Statute?

Myths and misunderstanding have prevented Kyiv from joining the ICC.

4 Apr 23

Yuriy Byelousov heads the war crimes department in the prosecutor general’s office. © Andriy Dubchak

Ukraine: Prosecuting the Crime of Genocide

“Russia's goal is the destruction of the national group of Ukrainians.”

28 Mar 23

Serhii Bolvinov is a chief investigator of the National Police of the Kharkiv region. © Ihor Tambiiev

Ukraine: From Traffic Accidents to War Crimes

How regional police department had to pivot to deal with influx of with some 10,000 cases.

21 Mar 23

A woman cries while being evacuated from her home on March 06, 2023 in Kupiansk, Ukraine. Volunteers from the European Traditions of Charity (ETOC) have been evacuating vulnerable civilians from Kupiansk due to Russian shelling of the town to the relatively safer regional capital of Kharkiv. © John Moore/Getty Images

Prosecuting Sexual Violence in Ukraine

“Every mistake can be fatal for the human psyche.”

14 Mar 23

An aerial view of artillery craters scarring the landscape next to a destroyed house on October 24, 2022 in Sulyhivka, Kharkiv oblast, Ukraine. © Carl Court/Getty Images

Environmental Damage as a War Crime

Despite widespread destruction, prosecuting Russia will come with many challenges.

21 Feb 23

Emergency workers search the remains of a residential building that was struck by a Russian missile on January 15, 2023 in Dnipro, Ukraine. The attack is the deadliest single incident since Russia started targeting cities far from front lines in Ukraine. © Spencer Platt/Getty Images

How Will US Support Justice for Ukraine?

Options “run the gamut” from financial backing to amending domestic legislation to facilitate prosecutions.

17 Jan 23

Limiting Russia’s Judicial Immunity

Supreme Court judge explains how a Ukrainian legal decision could transform future mechanisms for Russian reparations.

15 Nov 22

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