Brand seeks help from high court
Set to hear challenge to law allowing trademarks considered “scandalous” or “immoral” to be refused.
BRUSSELS — In a decision decried as “deeply flawed” and a “devastating blow for victims,” International Criminal Court judges on Friday rejected a request by the court’s prosecutor to open an investigation into war crimes and crimes against humanity in Afghanistan and alleged crimes by U.S. forces linked to the conflict.
In a lengthy written ruling, judges said an investigation “would not serve the interests of justice” because an investigation and prosecution were unlikely to be successful, as those targeted, including the United States, Afghan authorities and the Taliban, are not expected to cooperate.
Human Rights Watch slammed the ruling, calling it “a devastating blow for victims who have suffered grave crimes without redress.”
In a statement released by the White House, the Trump administration hailed the decision not to investigate U.S. personnel as “a major international victory, not only for these patriots, but for the rule of law.”
The ICC decision does acknowledge that the November 2017 request from Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda of Gambia to open a probe “establishes a reasonable basis to consider that crimes within the ICC jurisdiction have been committed in Afghanistan and that potential cases would be admissible before the Court.”
In a written reaction, the court’s prosecution office said it “will further analyze the decision and its implications, and consider all available legal remedies.”
The decision comes a month after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Washington would revoke or deny visas to ICC staff seeking to investigate alleged war crimes and other abuses committed by U.S. forces in Afghanistan or elsewhere.
Bensouda’s U.S. visa already has been revoked.
In a written statement, Pompeo pointed out that the rejection followed those measures: “I am glad the Court reconsidered its actions.”
Rights groups were not. Patrick Baudouin, president of the International Federation for Human Rights, called the rejection a “dark day for justice” and a “shocking decision, which is based on a deeply flawed reasoning.”
The request by Bensouda to open an investigation said there is information that members of the U.S. military and intelligence agencies “committed acts of torture, cruel treatment, outrages upon personal dignity, rape and sexual violence against conflict-related detainees in Afghanistan and other locations, principally in the 2003-2004 period.”
She also said that the Taliban and other insurgent groups have killed more than 17,000 civilians since 2009, including some 7,000 targeted killings.
She alleged that Afghan security forces have tortured prisoners at government detention centers.
Meanwhile in Afghanistan on Friday, the Taliban announced the start of the militant group’s spring offensive despite talking peace with the United States and ahead of a significant gathering of Afghans meant to discuss resolutions to the protracted war and an eventual withdrawal of American troops from the country.
The insurgents released a lengthy missive in five languages, including English, saying the fighting would continue while foreign forces remain in Afghanistan.
In a series of tweets later Friday, U.S. special peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad condemned the announcement as “reckless” and “irresponsible.”
The announcement is something the militant group does every year, even though Taliban attacks never really ceased during the harsh winter months. The insurgents carry out daily attacks targeting Afghan security forces and NATO troops, and inflicting staggering casualties, including among civilians. Most recently, a Taliban attack near the main U.S. air base in Afghanistan killed three Marines on Monday.
The Taliban now hold sway over half the country.