There should be an international arrest warrant against Russian President Vladimir Putin, a ‘war criminal’, the former chief prosecutor of the United Nations War Crimes Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda has said.
Carla del Ponte said during an interview to the Swiss newspaper Le Temps that Russia, under Putin, committed war crimes in Ukraine. Ponte said at the launch of his book that he was particularly shocked by the use of mass graves in Ukraine.
The Swiss layer, which oversees UN investigations into Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia, told the newspaper Blick it hoped never to see a mass grave again. “These dead people have loved ones who don’t even know what happened to them. This is unacceptable.”
He said Putin Ukraine has attacked civilians, destroyed civilian buildings and even demolished entire villages, which are also war crimes.
He said the investigation in Ukraine would be easier than in Yugoslavia as the country itself had requested an international investigation.
ICC’s current chief prosecutor Karim Khan visited Ukraine last month.
If the ICC finds evidence of war crimes, it said, “You must go up the chain of command until you get to the decision-makers.”
He said it would be possible to give an account to Putin as well.
“You mustn’t let go, keep the investigation going. When Slobodan Milosevic’s investigation started, he was still the president of Serbia. Who would have thought then that one day he would be judged? No one,” he told Blick.
She also called for an investigation into war crimes committed by both sides, hinting at the alleged torture of some Russian prisoners of war by Ukrainian forces.
with AP input
download
The app will get 14 days of unlimited access to Mint Premium absolutely free!