War crimes

War crimes

At the heart of the concept of war crimes is the idea that individuals can be held criminally responsible for the actions of a country or its soldiers.

War crimes and crimes against humanity are among the gravest crimes in international law.

They are considered so serious that there is no period of limitation for such crimes - which means that those who commit them can be prosecuted and punished no matter how much time has elapsed since the crimes were committed.

Historical note

The concept of war crimes is a recent one. Before World War II, it was generally accepted that the horrors of war were part of the nature of war, and recorded examples of war crimes go back to Greek and Roman times.

Before the twentieth century armies frequently behaved brutally to enemy soldiers and non-combatants alike - and whether there was any punishment for this depended on who eventually won the war.

Commanders and politicians usually escaped any punishment for their role in war - or, if they lost, were summarily executed or imprisoned.

There was no structured approach to dealing with 'war crimes' nor any general agreement that political and military leaders should take criminal responsibility for the acts of their states or their troops.

Attitudes changed during World War II when the murder of several million people - mainly Jews - by Nazi Germany, and the mistreatment of both civilians and prisoners of war by the Japanese, prompted the Allied powers to prosecute the people they believed to be the perpetrators of these crimes.

These trials provide the main precedents for cases being heard by tribunals in this century, among them the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague.

Victor's justice

People are usually only tried for war crimes if their country loses the war - a victorious nation rarely tries its own people for war crimes - with the result that war crimes trials can look like revenge trials, and be seen as acts of injustice themselves.

But this isn't always the case - several Americans were tried for war crimes committed in the Vietnam conflict, and the war crimes trials relating to conflict in the former Yugoslavia is likely to be a significant exception to this tradition.

What acts are war crimes?

War crimes are defined by the Geneva Conventions, the precedents of the Nuremberg Tribunals, an older area of law referred to as the Laws and Customs of War, and, in the case of the former Yugoslavia, the statutes of the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague (ICTY).



War crimes fall into three groups - or four if you include genocide.

Crimes against peace

planning, preparation, initiation or waging of a war of aggression, or a war in violation of international treaties, agreements or assurances

participation in a common plan or conspiracy for the accomplishment of any of the above

War crimes

Violations of the laws or customs of war, including:

Atrocities or offences against persons or property, constituting violations of the laws or customs of war

murder, ill treatment or deportation to slave labour or for any other purpose of the civilian population in occupied territory

murder or ill treatment of prisoners of war or persons on the seas

killing of hostages

torture or inhuman treatment, including biological experiments

plunder of public or private property

wanton destruction of cities, towns or villages

devastation not justified by military necessity

Crimes against humanity

Atrocities and offences committed against any civilian population, before or during the war, including:

murder

extermination

enslavement

deportation

mass systematic rape and sexual enslavement in a time of war

other inhumane acts

persecutions on political, racial or religious grounds in execution of or in connection with any crime within the jurisdiction of the Tribunal, whether or not in violation of the domestic law of the country where perpetrated

Responsibility for such crimes

Leaders, organisers, instigators and accomplices participating in the formulation or execution of a common plan or conspiracy to commit any of the crimes above are criminally responsible for everything done by anyone in carrying out such a plan.

Superior orders

The fact that a person was obeying an order of his Government or of a superior does not free him from responsibility, but can be considered and may reduce the appropriate punishment.

A very detailed list of crimes against humanity and war crimes can be found in articles 7 and 8 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, which is online at the United Nations website. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites.