news, national

Australian Red Cross volunteers have spent six weeks watching every episode of Game of Thrones to pick out how many of its famous characters could theoretically be prosecuted for war crimes. Red Cross International Humanitarian Law national manager Yvette Zegenhagen said the organisation chose to focus on the fictional war crimes to raise awareness of the fact that "wars have laws". Daenerys Targaryen is a war criminal according to the group, while Jon Snow's use of child soldiers also breaches international laws of war. "Many people in conflicts around the world feel like the laws of war continue to be a critical way of protecting lives but it can sometimes feel like a bit of a theoretical concept for those that are living in peaceful places like Australia," Ms Zegenhagen said in a statement. Ramsay Bolton is the worst offender, with 17 serious violations of the law, including wilful killing, torture, sexual violence and perfidy. Daenerys Targaryen's use of dragons was a grey area for the Red Cross, but her use of torture and sentencing enemies to death meant she was the second worst offender. In total, the Red Cross experts identified 103 violations of the laws of war, with the prolific use of slaves and child soldiers. The third most prolific offender was Ramsay Bolton's father Roose, who racked up eight violations, while the Night King was close behind him with six violations, including slavery and use of incendiary weapons. "We haven't done this with HBO - we are just giant opportunistic nerds that love their show and are passionate about talking about the laws of war," Ms Zegenhagen said. Australian Associated Press

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