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The Ukrainian prosecutor general's office said on Tuesday it was investigating the blast at the Nova Kakhovka dam, situated in Russian-occupied territory, as a war crime and possible act of environmental destruction, or "ecocide". Kyiv said this was a war crime, while Moscow said the targets were legitimate. WHAT DOES INTERNATIONAL LAW SAY? The Geneva Conventions and additional protocols shaped by international courts say that parties involved in a military conflict must distinguish between “civilian objects and military objectives”, and that attacks on civilian objects are forbidden. IS ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE MILITARY OR CIVILIAN?

Persons: Dmitry Peskov, general's, Marko Milanovic, Michael Schmitt, Milanovic, Katharine Fortin, Stephanie van den Berg, Anthony Deutsch, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS, HAGUE, Russia, Criminal, European, of International, University of Reading, ICC, Lieber Institute for Law & Warfare, United States Military Academy West, Utrecht University, Thomson Locations: Nova, Kherson region, Ukraine, Geneva, Ukrainian, Dnipro, Russia, Moscow, Rome

☆ Russia, Ukraine face off at World Court over MH17 airliner downing
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Stephanie Van Den Berg | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

THE HAGUE, June 6 (Reuters) - Ukraine and Russia face off at the top United Nations court on Tuesday over Moscow's alleged backing of pro-Russian separatists blamed for the shooting down of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 in 2014. It will be the first time lawyers for Ukraine and Russia meet at the ICJ, also know as the World Court, since Moscow launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022. Ukraine will first present its case and Russia will then have an opportunity to respond. It also found that Russia had "overall control" over forces in the breakaway Donetsk People's Republic in eastern Ukraine since mid-May 2014. A finding by the World Court that Russia equipped and funded rebels in eastern Ukraine responsible for the MH17 disaster would be a defeat for Moscow, which repeatedly denied sending troops or military equipment to eastern Ukraine in 2014.

Persons: Moscow's, MH17, Vladimir Putin, Stephanie van den Berg, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: HAGUE, United Nations, Malaysian Airlines Flight, International Court, Russian, ICJ, Russian Embassy, Donetsk People's, Court, Moscow, International Criminal Court, Kremlin, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Moscow, Amsterdam, Kuala Lumpur, Russian, Ukrainian, The Hague, Donetsk People's Republic, Kyiv

☆ U.N. judges expand conviction of Milosevic aides in final Yugoslav tribunal case
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Stephanie Van Den Berg | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/5] Former head of Serbia's state security service Jovica Stanisic appears in court at the UN International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT) in The Hague, Netherlands May 31, 2023. REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw/PoolTHE HAGUE, May 31 (Reuters) - U.N. judges on Wednesday expanded the convictions of two former Serbian spymasters who worked for Yugoslav ex-president Slobodan Milosevic and sentenced them to 15 years in the final case before the tribunal in The Hague dating from the Balkan wars of the 1990s. The former head of Serbia's state security service, Jovica Stanisic, and his subordinate Franko "Frenki" Simatovic could be held responsible for crimes in several Bosnian municipalities and one Croatian one due to their role in financing and training Serb militias during the break-up of Yugoslavia, appeals judges said. The Appeal chamber found Stanisic and Simatovic "shared the intent to further the common criminal plan to forcibly and permanently remove the majority of non-Serbs from large areas of Croatia and Bosnia", presiding judge Judge Graciela Gatti Santana said, reading a summary of the verdict expanding their convictions. Reporting by Stephanie van den Berg; Editing by Toby Chopra and Philippa FletcherOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Stanisic, de, Serbian spymasters, Slobodan Milosevic, Jovica Stanisic, Franko, Frenki, Graciela Gatti Santana, Stephanie van den Berg, Toby Chopra, Philippa Fletcher Organizations: UN, REUTERS, HAGUE, Yugoslav, Thomson Locations: The Hague, Netherlands, Serbian, Bosnian, Yugoslavia, Croatia, Bosnia

☆ Ukraine and Russia face off in June at World Court over flight MH17
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

THE HAGUE, May 16 (Reuters) - Ukraine and Russia will face off before the United Nations' top court on June 6, when judges will hear Ukraine's claim that Moscow violated a U.N. treaty by supporting pro-Russian separatists who were identified by a Dutch court as being responsible for the 2014 downing of flight MH17. The Dutch ruling also found that Russia had "overall control" over the forces of the Donetsk People's Republic in Eastern Ukraine from mid-May 2014. The International Court of Justice, as the World Court is formally known, has set four days of hearings on June 6, 8, 12 and 14 to hear both sides in the case. This case, filed in 2017, is one of two Ukraine brought against Russia at the court. The other case, filed just after the 2022 Russian invasion, centers on Moscow's claim they invaded Ukraine to prevent genocide.

☆ Father of hundreds gets sperm donation ban from Dutch court
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

THE HAGUE, April 28 (Reuters) - A Dutch court on Friday ordered a man who judges said had fathered between 500 and 600 children around the world to stop donating sperm. The 41-year-old Dutchman, identified by de Telegraaf newspaper as Jonathan Meijer, was forbidden to donate more semen to clinics, the court ruling said. The decision came after a civil case started by a foundation representing the interests of donor children and Dutch parents who had used Meijer as a donor. However, he continued to donate abroad, including to the Danish sperm bank Cryos which operates internationally. Meijer also continued to offer himself as a donor on sites matching prospective parents with sperm donors, sometimes using a different name, according to the Algemeen Dagblad daily.

☆ World Court says it can rule on Guyana-Venezuela border dispute
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

THE HAGUE, April 6 (Reuters) - Judges at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Thursday ruled they had jurisdiction over a long-running border dispute between Guyana and Venezuela, which could determine which country has rights to offshore oil and gas fields. Guyana asked the ICJ, also known as the World Court, in 2018 to confirm that the border was laid down in an 1899 arbitration between Venezuela and the then-colony of British Guiana. The court "by 14 votes to 1, rejects the preliminary objection raised by the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela," said presiding judge Joan Donoghue, while reading the decision. Venezuela does not want the ICJ to rule and instead insists on a bilateral negotiated solution to determine the course of the land border, which may ultimately determine which country has rights to certain offshore oil and gas fields. Offshore oil discoveries in recent years have given Guyana, which has no history of oil production, the potential to become one of the largest producers in Latin America.

☆ World Court rules U.S. was wrong to freeze Iranian assets
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Stephanie Van Den Berg | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

However, in a blow for Tehran, the World Court said it did not have jurisdiction over $1.75 billion in frozen assets from Iran's central bank, by far the largest amount claimed back by Iran. The ruling comes amid heightened tensions between the United States and Iran after tit-for-tat strikes between Iran-backed forces and U.S. personnel in Syria last week. The case before the ICJ, also known as the World Court, was initially brought by Tehran against Washington in 2016 for allegedly breaching a 1955 friendship treaty by allowing U.S. courts to freeze assets of Iranian companies. The rulings of the ICJ, the United Nations' top court, are binding, but it has no means of enforcing them. The United States and Iran are among a handful of countries to have disregarded its decisions in the past.

Putin is just the third head of state to be indicted by the International Criminal Court while still in power. The ICC accuses Putin of responsibility for the war crime of deporting Ukrainian children - at least hundreds, possibly more - to Russia. TRAVEL ABROADThe ICC's 123 member states are obliged to detain and transfer Putin if he sets foot on their territory. Kenya's President William Ruto and his predecessor Uhuru Kenyatta were both charged by the ICC before they were elected. Former Kosovo President Hashim Thaci, one of Milosevic's adversaries in the 1990s Balkan wars, left office after being indicted for war crimes by the Kosovo war crimes tribunal in The Hague.

WHO IS INVESTIGATING WAR CRIMES IN UKRAINE? Ukrainian war crimes prosecutors are working with mobile justice teams supported by international legal experts and forensic teams. A total of 296 individuals have been charged with war crimes. War crimes can be defined under customary international law or national law. A number of mostly European states have universal jurisdiction laws that allow them to prosecute Ukrainian war crimes.

☆ Ukraine war shows urgency of military AI, Palantir CEO says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Tosterling Stephanie Van Den Berg | Stephanie Van Den Berg | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

AMSTERDAM, Feb 15 (Reuters) - Ukraine's effective use of artificial intelligence (AI) to target Russian forces has pushed the technology onto the agenda of military and political leaders around the world, the CEO of U.S. software firm Palantir (PLTR.N) said on Wednesday. Speaking at the first international summit on responsible military use of AI, CEO Alex Karp said use of AI in war has moved from a "highly erudite ethics discussion" to a top concern since the start of the conflict in Ukraine. "This has now shifted to: your ability to identify the right technology and implement it will determine what happens on the battlefield," he said. "One of the major things we need to do in the West, is realise this lesson is completely understood by China and Russia." Karp has previously said that Planatir is "responsible for most of the targeting in Ukraine", with the company citing the examples of tanks and artillery.

☆ Dutch host first summit on 'responsible' use of AI in the military
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Tosterling Stephanie Van Den Berg | Stephanie Van Den Berg | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"We're taking the first step in articulating and working toward what responsible use of AI in the military will be." The event may be an early step toward someday developing an international arms treaty on AI, though that is seen as far off. Some 2,000 people including experts and academics are attending a conference alongside the summit, with discussion topics including killer drones and slaughter bots. Hoekstra said the summit will not replace that debate but will look at other aspects of military AI. Examples include definition of terms, how AI could safely be used to accelerate decision-making in a military context, and how it could be used to identify legitimate targets.

☆ Armenia tells World Court Azerbaijan blockade is 'ethnic cleansing'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Stephanie Van Den Berg | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

THE HAGUE, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Armenia told judges at the World Court on Monday that a blockade of the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region by neighbouring Azerbaijan was designed to allow "ethnic cleansing", a claim rejected by Baku. Monday's hearing at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), also known as the World Court, was called to hear an Armenian request for the court to order Azerbaijan to lift the blockade. "Such blatant acts of ethnic cleansing have no place in the modern era and this court is the last hope for the ethnic Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh," Kirakosyan said. Mammadov also said that Armenia's claims of ethnic cleansing were "distorting reality deliberately" and were "fanning the flames" of conflict. On Tuesday the ICJ will hear a competing demand from Azerbaijan for the court to order Armenia to stop planting landmines in territories it once occupied.

☆ ASML: Steps made towards deal on curbing exports to China
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

THE HAGUE, Jan 28 (Reuters) - ASML Holding NV (ASML.AS) said on Saturday it understood progress had been made towards an agreement among several governments on new restrictions on semiconductor manufacturing equipment exports to China. ASML, a key supplier to chipmakers, has been restricted from selling its most advanced tools to China since 2019. Tensions between the United States and China over semiconductors have steadily worsened since then, prompting Washington in October to impose export restrictions on its own chip manufacturing equipment companies. "It is our understanding that steps have been made towards an agreement between governments which, to our understanding, will be focused on advanced chip manufacturing technology, including but not limited to advanced lithography tools," ASML said. Its statement follows a Bloomberg report on Friday that said the United States, Japan and the Netherlands had reached an agreement following months of talks.

☆ Dutch PM Rutte: may not disclose result of U.S. chip export control talks
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

AMSTERDAM, Jan 27 (Reuters) - The Netherlands' Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on Friday that it is not clear whether his government will disclose the result of ongoing talks with the U.S. over new export restrictions for the semiconductor industry. A Dutch delegation is in the U.S. on Friday for talks. "Those talks have been going on for a long time and we're not saying anything about it," Rutte said. Asked whether ASML would not need to be informed of the decision in order to implement new restrictions, Rutte said government communications with the company "are also private." Reporting by Stephanie van den Berg, Toby Sterling, Charlotte Van Campenhout, Editing by Louise HeavensOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Dutch export rules on China in focus ahead of ASML results
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Tosterling Stephanie Van Den Berg | Stephanie Van Den Berg | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

One is making sure Dutch rules are drafted in such a way that they are not actually more restrictive for ASML than for U.S. companies. ASML is expected to post fourth-quarter net income of 1.68 billion euros ($1.82 billion) on record revenue of 6.37 billion euros, according to Refinitiv Eikon data. In November ASML raised its annual revenue estimates by 25% to at least 30 billion euros by 2025. There could be further losses from tougher Dutch rules, if for example, limits are re-applied to sales to China of older technology deep ultraviolet lithography (DUV) equipment. ASML has sold more than 8 billion euros worth of such equipment in China since 2014, when DUV was removed from international lists of goods deemed of possible military use.

☆ Explainer: When are attacks on civilian infrastructure war crimes?
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( Stephanie Van Den Berg | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Gleb GaranichTHE HAGUE, Dec 16 (Reuters) - Russia's attacks on Ukraine's civilian infrastructure, including energy facilities, have been described as possible war crimes by the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and Amnesty International. The Geneva conventions and additional protocols shaped by international courts say that parties involved in a military conflict must distinguish between "civilian objects and military objectives" and that attacks on civilian objects are forbidden. IS ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE MILITARY OR CIVILIAN? "Simply put, Russian forces are almost certainly striking many targets that do not qualify as military objectives," Schmitt argues. Russia says it attacks military targets including energy infrastructure.

☆ EU seeks tribunal to probe possible Russian war crimes in Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"We are ready to start working with the international community to get the broadest international support possible for this specialised court," von der Leyen said. Ukraine has been pushing for the creation of a special tribunal to prosecute Russian military and political leaders it holds responsible for starting the war. The Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC) launched its own investigation into alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes days after Moscow's Feb. 24 invasion, but it does not have jurisdiction to prosecute aggression in Ukraine. The G7 agreed on Tuesday to set up a network to coordinate investigations into war crimes as part of a push to prosecute suspected atrocities in Ukraine. There are several forms the special aggression tribunal could take but legal experts say the most likely is a so-called hybrid tribunal, operating under Ukrainian law with support from the international community.

However, the patterns suggest that sexual violence “maybe even more frequent” in territories that were occupied for longer periods, he added, without providing evidence. Widespread or systematic sexual violence could amount to crimes against humanity, which are generally seen as more serious, legal specialists said. Moscow, which has said it is conducting a “special military operation" in Ukraine, has denied committing war crimes or targeting civilians. Evidence that sexual violence was planned could indicate it was part of a systematic attack or that some level of command was aware, said Kim Thuy Seelinger, an advisor to the ICC on sexual violence in conflict and a research associate professor at Washington University in St. Louis. Ukraine’s Prosecutor General’s office said it has opened dozens of criminal cases involving sexual violence by members of the Russian armed forces against women, children and men.

☆ Netherlands protests 'despicable' Russian response to MH17 verdict
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

AMSTERDAM, Nov 18 (Reuters) - The Dutch government said on Friday it had summoned the Russian ambassador in the Netherlands over what it called Moscow's "utterly despicable" response to the verdict in the trial over the 2014 downing of Flight MH17. Russia said on Thursday the Dutch court's decision to convict two former Russian intelligence agents and a Ukrainian separatist leader for shooting down the Malaysian airliner "neglected impartiality". Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra said these remarks by Russia, which invaded Ukraine nine months ago, were "utterly despicable" and totally removed from reality. We can't let this pass ... and have to show that we do respect the rule of law and do have an independent judiciary," Hoekstra told Dutch newspaper AD. Reporting by Bart Meijer and Stephanie van den Berg Editing by Mark Potter and Mark HeinrichOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Dutch court confirms that MH 17 was shot down by Russian-made missile
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

[1/2] Lawyers attend the judges' inspection of the reconstruction of the MH17 wreckage, as part of the murder trial ahead of the beginning of a critical stage, in Reijen, Netherlands, May 26, 2021. REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw/Pool/File PhotoAMSTERDAM, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was shot down in 2014 by a Russian-made missile fired from a field in eastern Ukraine, the Dutch court handling the trial of four suspects in the downing of the plane said on Thursday. "The court is of the opinion that MH17 was brought down by the firing of a BUK missile from a farm field near Pervomaisk, killing al 283 passengers and 15 crew members," presiding judge Hendrik Steenhuis said. Reporting by Stephanie van den Berg, Toby Sterling and Bart Meijer; Editing by Jon BoyleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Dutch court says Russia had 'overall control' of separatists in Ukraine at time of MH17 downing
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Presiding Judge Hendrik Steenhuis inspects the reconstruction of the MH17 wreckage, as part of the murder trial ahead of the beginning of a critical stage, in Reijen, Netherlands, May 26, 2021. REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw/PoolAMSTERDAM, Nov 17 (Reuters) - The Dutch court handling the trial of four suspects in the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 on Thursday said Russia had overall control of the separatist forces in eastern Ukraine at the time when the plane was shot down. "From half May 2014 Russia had so called overall control over the People's Republic of Donetsk," presiding judge Hendrik Steenhuis said referring to the region where the passenger flight was show down on July 17, 2014. In the ongoing ruling, the court had earlier said the plane was shot down by a Russian-made missile. Reporting by Stephanie van den Berg, Toby Sterling and Bart Meijer; Editing by Toby ChopraOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Dutch crown princess Amalia under heightened security
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

AMSTERDAM, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Dutch Crown Princess Catharina-Amalia is under heightened security due to concern that she could be targeted by criminals, Dutch news agency ANP reported on Thursday, citing her parents. "She can hardly leave the house," ANP quoted Queen Maxima as saying during a state visit to Sweden with her husband King Willem-Alexander. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterLast month, several Dutch media outlets reported that the princess, whose formal title is Princess of Orange, was under heightened security due to fears that criminal gangs may target her for kidnapping or an attack. Dutch police and the country's secret service have declined to discuss security arrangements around the Royal House. Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Thursday evening said he could not specify the details of the threats.

☆ Dutch right-to-die group fights to widen legal euthanasia boundaries
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-10 | by ( Stephanie Van Den Berg | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"We believe it should be possible to provide the means to be able to humanely end your own life," Jos van Wijk of Cooperative Last Will said in court. A lawyer for the cooperative said the case is strategic litigation aimed at forcing the Netherlands to change the laws. Lawyers for the Dutch state argued that the euthanasia laws strike good balance between the duty of the state to protect citizens, even from themselves, and individual autonomy. The Netherlands was the first country in the world to legalise euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide under very strict conditions and when overseen by medical professionals. Assisting a suicide, or providing a means to commit suicide outside of the strict euthanasia criteria, is punishable with a jail term of up to three years.

☆ Dutch tulip park Keukenhof starts bulb planting season
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Flower bulbs are seen at Keukenhof Spring Park in Lisse, Netherlands October 6, 2022. REUTERS/Piroschka van de WouwTHE HAGUE, Oct 6 (Reuters) - Gardeners at one of the Netherlands top tourist attractions, the Keukenhof flower park, on Thursday started planting the first tulip and daffodil bulbs that will be part of its colourful display of blooms next spring. Over the coming months, the park's 40 gardeners will plant seven million bulbs by hand, the Keukenhof park said. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Piroschka van de Wou, writing by Stephanie van den Berg. Editing by Jane MerrimanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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