ICC’s Karim Khan makes unannounced visit to Damascus for talks on “accountability for alleged crimes.”
The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) made an unannounced visit to Syria to meet with Ahmad al-Sharaa, the leader of Syria’s new de facto government, to discuss how to ensure accountability for alleged crimes committed in the country.
Prosecutor Karim Khan met with al-Sharaa and the Syrian foreign minister on Friday to discuss options for justice at the ICC for victims of the country’s 13-year war.
A statement from Khan’s office said he “traveled to Damascus at the invitation of the Syrian transitional government.”
He said the visit was aimed at discussing how the office “can offer its partnership to support the Syrian authorities’ efforts toward accountability for alleged crimes committed in the country.”
The ICC, with 125 member states, is the world’s permanent tribunal charged with prosecuting individuals accused of war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and aggression.
Opposition fighters from al-Sharaa’s Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) party carried out a lightning offensive that toppled President Bashar al-Assad last month, and the group became the de facto ruling party in the country.
Al-Assad, who fled to Russia in December, waged a campaign of oppression against his opponents during more than two decades in power.
Human rights groups estimated that tens of thousands of people disappeared after anti-government protests began in 2011, with many disappearing into al-Assad’s prison network. Many of them were likely killed, either in mass executions or due to torture and prison conditions. The exact number remains unknown.
The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, the global chemical weapons watchdog, found that Syrian forces were responsible for several attacks using chlorine gas and other banned substances against civilians.
Other groups have also been accused of human rights violations and war crimes during the country’s war.
The new authorities have called for members of the Al-Assad regime to be brought to justice. It’s unclear exactly how this would work at this point.
Syria is not a member of the ICC, leaving it without the ability to investigate the war. In 2014, Russia and China blocked a referral to the United Nations Security Council that would have given jurisdiction to the tribunal. Similar referrals were made for Sudan and Libya.
Khan’s visit comes after a trip to Damascus last month by the United Nations organization that helps investigate Syria’s most serious crimes.
The International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism for Syria was established to assist in the collection of evidence and prosecution of those responsible for possible war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide since the start of the war in Syria in 2011.
More than half a million people were killed during the war and more than six million others fled the country.
