If accurate, this is huge news -- especially the #apartheid charge, which would be groundbreaking.

Note to readers: the ICC spokesperson not denying applications for arrest warrants have been filed means nothing. The Court would not acknowledge that applications had been filed. It would not acknowledge that applications has not been filed. End of story. There are no tea leaves here.

*stares in 9/11*

Since September 2025, the U.S. military has been carrying out a campaign of premeditated, targeted killings against *civilians*—the boat bombings. So senior U.S. military officers and DoD officials claiming they care about CIVCAS rings a tad hollow.

This is an interesting and important post, but it misrepresents the #ICC's territorial jurisdiction. The authors claim the PTC held in Bangladesh/Myanmar "that jurisdiction attaches where at least one element of a crime, or its effects, occurs on state party territory." But that isn't correct.

Naturally, I disagree. @ejiltalk.bsky.social is a wonderful blog. But the range of perspectives and voices we publish @opiniojuris.bsky.social is still unparalleled in the international-law blogosphere. I do regret blogging less. I hope to get back to it soon.

The @middleeasteye-rss.bsky.social interview also mentions that Ben Swanson, the former Assistant Secretary-General of OIOS, agrees with the Judicial Panel that the OIOS investigation did not establish misconduct or breach of duty.

This is a must-read @middleeasteye-rss.bsky.social interview with the Prosecutor by David Hearst and Imran Mulla.

It’s happening! 🥳 “The European Union has voted to join a Special Tribunal established to try Russia’s leadership for the crime of aggression against Ukraine. (…) The tribunal will start with a preliminary allocation of €10 million with an estimated annual budget of €30-40 million thereafter.”

Come to the 2nd Annual Nordic IHL Symposium, May 28-29 at my very own Centre for Military Studies @ucph.bsky.social. Co-organised by @danskrodekors.bsky.social and co-hosted by the Danish MoD and MFA. You can find the programme and link to register here: cms.polsci.ku.dk/events/2nd-a...

It's not too late for me to do a postdoc, right?

It is disturbing to see the U.S. military continuing to carry out orders that outside experts (if not the administration's own lawyers) say are blatantly unlawful. If Trump’s hand-picked generals are willing to act so egregiously this instance, what else might they do in the future? wapo.st/4tOygA5

These are two of the most critical questions, because they explain why the political campaign to convince the Bureau to disregard the unanimous conclusion of the Judicial Panel is based on a fundamental misrepresentation of the OIOS report.

“To cheer on a justice process where political actors cast aside the reasoned findings of impartial and independent judges is to create a monster. It is dangerously naïve to think that one can keep that monster in a box and only unleash it against individuals one has prejudged as guilty.”

My interview @opiniojuris.bsky.social with @saretaashraph.bsky.social, Lead Counsel for Karim Khan, is up. It provides an important correction to the false narrative being pushed by political actors who want the Bureau to ignore the judges the Bureau itself appointed. opiniojuris.org/2026/05/01/a...

"All [the Ukranians] could do was to hope that over time they would be able to change perceptions inside the Kremlin about whether the war was being won or was even winnable. The fact that this has yet to happen does not mean that the strategy was wrong. Only that it required patience."

At 14:30 CET today @opiniojuris.bsky.social will publish a long interview I conducted with @saretaashraph.bsky.social, Lead Counsel for @KarimKhanQC. We explore all aspects of the investigation, including why an avowedly feminist barrister, co-founder of Atlas Women, is representing Khan. Read it!

📣Call for Contributions📣 The Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine was established in 2025. Whereas its complex constitution and jurisdictional design have been addressed at length, we are launching a symposium on this topic to expand on this matter. Deadline: 14 June 2026 ‼️

He is a terrible candidate so will undoubtedly win.

Really important interview with the Prosecutor. And an important corrective to the dishonest campaign to convince the Bureau to substitute its political judgment for the reasoned analysis of the judges the Bureau chose and appointed.

We have long since crossed over into crime against humanity territory. The only question whether the relevant crime against humanity is murder or extermination.

Important statement by 30 NGOs concerned with #Darfur condemning the possible "departure from the findings of the judicial panel in favour of discretionary ASP intervention as a serious breach of the Court’s foundational commitment to justice." www.linkedin.com/posts/abdall...

Notably, Trump claims to have ended the 2025 12 Day War between Israel and Iran at the same time his State Department claims that war *never ended* in an attempt to legally justify the February attack on Iran.

The new teenager celebrating her birthday at the Tame Impala concert in Copenhagen, courtesy of her aunt who manages Kevin Parker's affairs. Amazing seats!

They don't want to make #Republican voters look bad.

It turns out that prospective students don’t want to attend an institution that has removed loads of talented educators, closed lots of significant departments and generally treated its staff terribly.

This is a superb post. But one minor point: as interpreted by the ICTY, the war crime of spreading terror, unlike the IHL violation, has a result requirement: "the victims suffered grave consequences resulting from the acts or threats of violence." cld.irmct.org/notions/show...

The US appears to suggest one can have a cease-fire and a militarily enforced blockade at the same time. It is worth reminding everyone of the Definition of Aggression (1974): the blockade of another state's ports is an act of aggression. hrlibrary.umn.edu/instree/GAre...

Point 13 is risible. In the 2020 social mobility rankings, the US was 27th. (My adopted country, Denmark, was #1.)

“Is international law shaping how wars are fought – or only how they’re justified?” Yale scholar, Professor Samuel Moyn, dives into this urgent question at Oxford’s 2026 Cyril Foster Lecture. Thursday 7 May at 5pm 📍 Examination Schools Register now: https://tinyurl.com/bbjmb75u

Nice to be quoted in this excellent @rosesheinerman.bsky.social/Isabel Ruehl article in @theatlantic.com on Trump's threats to send #Iran back to the stone age. www.theatlantic.com/national-sec...

Same paper that routinely describes people making 200K per year as barely middle-class in their "Affording New York" series.

"Known narco-trafficking routes" is the "military-age males" of the ocean.

It is exceedingly obvious the correct answer is Ankylosaurus.

Fantastic post by the inimitable Melanie O'Brien.

Very important perspective on the case from @saretaashraph.bsky.social, KarimKhan's lead attorney. Debunks the many (almost certainly deliberate) misrepresentation of the process by those who don't like its outcome. www.aljazeera.com/opinions/202...

Important @middleeasteye-rss.bsky.social article, not least because it explains -- accurately -- how voting at the Assembly of States Parties would involve two separate votes with different voting rules.

Important @middleeasteye-rss.bsky.social article, not least because it explains -- accurately -- how voting at the Assembly of States Parties would involve two separate votes with different voting rules.

ICC bureau votes to pursue misconduct case against Karim Khan - https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/icc-governing-bureau-votes-pursue-karim-khan-misconduct-case

Very kind of @tmgneff.bsky.social to quote me in this interesting @nytimes.com article on the US housing American soldiers in civilian hotels and offices throughout the Middle East. Tl;dr -- probably a violation of IHL, definitely a terrible idea. www.nytimes.com/2026/04/01/u...

That international law is "real" law.

Thoughts on the Panel report by @sevslv and Judge Cuno Tarfusser, formerly of the #ICC.

ICC states should not ignore judicial experts’ conclusions in Khan’s case. Doing so would damage State Parties’ own credibility and that of the ICC system. Former ICC Judge Tarfusser's and my opinion piece for @ajenglish.bsky.social www.aljazeera.com/opinions/202...

Another report on the investigation. Striking pre-report comment by FIDH and WIJG.

Statement by the African Bar Association. afribar.org/african-bar-...

Le Monde: 'Majority' of ICC bureau members support Karim Khan exoneration report - https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/le-monde-majority-icc-bureau-members-support-karim-khan-exoneration

Le sort du procureur de la CPI, Karim Khan, reste incertain au sein de l’institution malgré l’enquête qui le blanchit

Drop a movie that traumatized you as a kid.

Exclusive: 'Handful' of ICC states aim to sabotage report that cleared Karim Khan - https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/iccs-risks-politicisation-states-seek-sideline-karim-khan-judges-report

I have a long post @opiniojuris.bsky.social today about the standard of proof that applies in #ICC disciplinary proceedings. The answer is clear and unequivocal: proof beyond a reasonable doubt. opiniojuris.org/2026/03/23/t...