THE HAGUE: Ukraine could extradite Russian war crimes suspects to the International Criminal Court (ICC) even though Moscow is not a member, the tribunal’s prosecutor said on Thursday.
Kyiv authorities could send Russians to the Hague-based court if trials could not take place in Ukraine for legal reasons, ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan said.
Russia, which invaded Ukraine on February 24, refused to join the ICC when the court was set up in 2002 to try people for offenses including war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.
“Legally yes it wouldn’t represent an obstacle to our jurisdiction,” Khan told a press conference at the headquarters of the EU’s judicial agency, Eurojust.
“Certainly if there was a need... and there was a reason why those trials could not take place in Ukraine, whether it’s because of some legal additional provisions that we have or not, I am sure that we would get the cooperation from Ukraine,” he added.
The ICC opened its own probe into the war in Ukraine shortly after Russia invaded, but has said it is keen for Ukraine to bring suspects to justice where possible.
Khan would not say when the ICC expects to file its own first charges, saying he would wait until the “evidence is sufficient.”
“We are moving forward, we have focus, but I will make announcements at the right time,” he said.
Kyiv has already convicted 10 people over crimes committed during Russia’s invasion, Ukrainian Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin told the news conference.
It has indicted a total of 186 people, mostly in absentia, and filed court papers for 45 people.
Ukraine will meanwhile file war crimes charges over Russia’s bombardment of Kyiv and other cities this week, said Kostin.
“All of the hits of every missile, every drone, every damage of civil infrastructure, every Ukrainian who was killed or wounded by these missile attacks, all of them are documented and criminal proceedings were opened,” he said.
Ukraine’s allies have pledged more powerful air defense systems after days of devastating Russian attacks that President Vladimir Putin said were retaliation for a deadly explosion at a Crimean bridge.
Several Western leaders have described the Russian strikes as a war crime.
Romania meanwhile said it had joined an international investigation team probing war crimes along with Lithuania, Poland, Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia and Slovakia, along with Eurojust and the ICC.
Ukraine could extradite Russians to ICC: prosecutor
https://arab.news/59vrq
Ukraine could extradite Russians to ICC: prosecutor
- Kyiv authorities could send Russians to the Hague-based court if trials could not take place in Ukraine for legal reasons
- “Legally yes it wouldn’t represent an obstacle to our jurisdiction,” ICC chief prosecutor said
Dozens missing after boat carrying more than 200 migrants capsized off the coast of Gambia
- At least 102 survivors have been rescued and seven bodies recovered from the boat that capsized on New Year’s Eve in northwest Gambia’s North Bank region
BANJUL: Dozens are missing after a boat carrying more than 200 migrants on their way to Europe capsized off the coast of Gambia, the West African nation’s leader said late Friday, setting off a frantic search and rescue operation.
At least 102 survivors have been rescued and seven bodies recovered from the boat that capsized on New Year’s Eve in northwest Gambia’s North Bank region, Gambian President Adama Barrow said in a state broadcast.
The emergency services were joined by local fishermen and other volunteers in searching for the victims, days after Wednesday’s incident near the village of Jinack, he said.
Thousands of Africans desperate for better opportunities in Europe risk their lives traveling on boats along the Atlantic coast, one of the world’s deadliest migrant routes that connects the West African coast across Gambia, Senegal and Mauritania.
Many migrants seeking to reach Spain via the Canary Islands never make it due to high risks of boats capsizing. In August 2025, around 150 people were either dead or missing after their boat that came from Gambia capsized off the coast of Mauritania. A similar incident in July 2024 killed more than a dozen migrants with 150 others declared missing.
It was not clear what led to the latest tragedy. Gambia’s Ministry of Defense said the boat was found “grounded on a sandbank.”
“The national emergency response plan has been activated and the government has deployed adequate resources to intensify efforts and provide assistance to the survivors,” Barrow said.
Some of the 102 survivors were undergoing urgent medical care, the Gambian leader said.
As he condoled with families, Barrow vowed a full investigation and called the accident a “painful reminder of the dangerous and life-threatening nature of irregular migration.”
“The government will strengthen efforts to prevent irregular migration and remains determined to create safer and more dignified opportunities for young people to fulfil their dreams,” he added.
