Russian war crimes in Ukraine to be investigated in Germany at the request of George Clooney
German courts are leading the world in investigating international crimes
According to Forbes, in October 2023, the Clooney Foundation for Justice (CFJ), a non-governmental organization founded by Amal and George Clooney, filed three lawsuits with the German Federal Prosecutor's Office demanding an investigation into crimes committed in Ukraine.
CFJ represents 16 victims and their families. The claims relate to crimes committed by Russian soldiers on the territory of Ukraine after Russia's full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022.
From the very beginning of the war, Docket, a separate project of the Foundation consisting of international lawyers and investigators, has been collecting evidence and preparing materials detailing crimes committed by Russian troops on the territory of Ukraine.
Their work included numerous field investigations in Ukraine, as well as extensive analysis of open-source data. The evidence gathered was used to initiate proceedings in Germany in accordance with the principle of universal jurisdiction.
According to the CFJ, all three cases were brought against senior and mid-level commanders who were identified as likely suspects.
As the CFJ explains, "if the German authorities find the evidence presented against specific individuals convincing, they can open a criminal investigation and issue an arrest warrant for the suspects, allowing for their detention, extradition and prosecution. Arrest warrants can be executed in countries outside of Germany through the Europol and Interpol systems. The International Criminal Court can issue arrest warrants for prime suspects."
German courts are leading the world in the investigation of international crimes in accordance with the principle of universal jurisdiction – that is, crimes committed outside Germany regardless of the nationality of the suspects or victims.
They investigated crimes committed by the Islamic State terrorist group against the Yazidis, an ethno-religious minority in Iraq.
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