Legal Definitions - International Criminal Court

The International Criminal Court (ICC) is a permanent, independent international criminal court that has jurisdiction over individuals who commit the most serious crimes that concern the international community. The ICC was established by the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, which was adopted on July 17, 1998, and came into force on July 1, 2002. Currently, there are 110 countries that are State Parties to the Rome Statute.

The ICC is located in Hague, Netherlands, and is not a part of the United Nations system. The ICC is intended to prosecute the following crimes:

• The crime of genocide
• Crimes against humanity
• War crimes
• The crime of aggression

For example, if a person commits genocide, which is the intentional killing of a large group of people based on their race, religion, or nationality, the ICC can prosecute them. Similarly, if a person commits a war crime, such as intentionally attacking civilians during a war, the ICC can prosecute them.

The ICC is a permanent criminal tribunal, unlike ad hocinternational criminal tribunals such as the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR). The ICC is intended to be a continuing permanent criminal tribunal.