He said Islamic State fighters responsible for mass atrocities should be prosecuted, preferably in the region, and if feasible by “an ad hoc or hybrid international criminal tribunal.”“I am fully aware of the complex obstacles on our road towards this goal,” Blok said. “I invite Security Council members and others to join us on this road towards justice,” Blok said. The Islamic State group’s self-declared “caliphate” that once spanned a third of both Iraq and Syria has been defeated on the battleground but its fighters are now staging insurgent attacks. A Security Council resolution backed by more than 60 countries to refer the Syrian conflict to the International Criminal Court was vetoed by both Russia and China in May 2014. In September 2017, the Security Council voted unanimously to ask the U.N. to establish an investigative team to help Iraq preserve evidence “that may amount to war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide” committed by Islamic State extremists.

Source: Washington Post May 23, 2019 18:12 UTC