ICC Orders Arrest of Russian Officials Accused of Directing Attacks on Civilians

The International Criminal Court on Tuesday issued arrest warrants for Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Russian Armed Forces Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov for allegedly ordering attacks on civilians during the ongoing invasion and occupation of Ukraine.

The ICC announced that its Pre-Trial Chamber II issued the warrants for Shoigu and Gerasimov for the alleged war crimes of "directing attacks at civilian objects" and "causing excessive incidental harm to civilians or damage to civilian objects," as well as the crime against humanity of "inhumane acts."

"Pre-Trial Chamber II considered that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the two suspects bear responsibility for missile strikes carried out by the Russian armed forces against the Ukrainian electric infrastructure from at least October 10, 2022 until at least March 9, 2023," the court said. "During this time frame, a large number of strikes against numerous electric power plants and substations were carried out by the Russian armed forces in multiple locations in Ukraine."

The warrants were issued in response to an application by ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan, under whose tenure the tribunal has also ordered the arrest of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian Commissioner for Children's Rights Maria Lvova-Belova for allegedly abducting Ukrainian children and transporting them to Russia.

"Today's decision reflects my office's continued commitment to give meaningful effect to the protection that the law provides to civilians and protected objects," Khan said in a statement. "As reflected in the decision of the chamber, one of the core objectives of international humanitarian law is the protection of civilians in armed conflicts."

"All those engaged in such conflicts must follow the baseline rules of conduct reflected in international humanitarian law," he continued. "This law provides protection to all, and gives equal value to all lives. This is the starting point, the foundational principle that guides our work at the International Criminal Court."

"As I have repeatedly emphasized, no individual, anywhere in the world, should feel they can act with impunity," Khan added. "And no person, anywhere in the world, should feel they are deserving of less protection than others."

While Russia's Security Council dismissed the warrants as "just shooting the breeze," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy applauded the ICC's move.

"Every criminal involved in the planning and execution of these strikes must know that justice will be served," he said. "And we do hope to see them behind bars."

Neither Russia nor Ukraine is a party to the Rome Statute, the treaty establishing the ICC.

Nor is the United States, which welcomed the warrants for Shoigu and Gerasimov—even as the Biden administration condemns Khan's effort to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes including extermination and forced starvation committed during the ongoing assault on Gaza. Khan is also seeking to arrest three leaders of Hamas, which led the October 7 attack on Israel, for alleged extermination, rape, and other crimes.

Although Israel is also not an ICC member state, the court's jurisdiction expands to Palestine. Israel's conduct in Gaza is also the subject of an International Court of Justice genocide case brought by South Africa.

While the Biden administration supports the ICC's prosecution of Russian leaders, the Pentagon has helped shield them from ICC accountability, fearing such a reckoning could set a precedent allowing the tribunal to prosecute Americans for alleged war crimes committed in the numerous countries the U.S. has invaded, occupied, or bombed in recent years.

Human rights defenders welcomed the warrants for Shoigu and Gerasimov, which Human Rights Watch said "signal that no one, no matter how high their rank, can escape justice for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Ukraine."

"It gives hope to victims of Russia's aggression against Ukraine that those responsible will be held accountable."

Amnesty International Ukraine director Veronika Velch said in a statement, "As Russia continues to conduct missile strikes that are crippling Ukraine's critical civilian infrastructure, the ICC has once again displayed its willingness to bring the most senior alleged perpetrators to justice."

"These ICC warrants mark another crucial step towards justice. Their issuance helps rebuild trust in international law and the institutions that uphold it," she continued. "It gives hope to victims of Russia's aggression against Ukraine that those responsible will be held accountable, no matter how high ranking. We will work to ensure that all those indicted by the ICC are arrested as soon as possible and that justice is done and is victim-focused."

"The ICC's arrest warrants rely on states carrying them out," Velch stressed. "Therefore, the international community must increase its efforts to ensure that—along with other Russian officials and military commanders sought by the ICC for trial including Vladimir Putin—Mr. Shoigu and Mr. Gerasimov are immediately arrested and surrendered to the ICC if they leave Russia."