World News

U.S. drops U.N. bid for war crimes shield

UNITED NATIONS (AP) - Facing global opposition fueled by the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal, the United States on June 23 dropped its attempt to renew a U.N. exemption shielding American troops from international prosecution for war crimes.

While the United States won praise for not pushing for a vote that would have deeply divided the U.N. Security Council, the Bush administration suffered a defeat in its lengthy battle against the world's first permanent war crimes tribunal.

Washington has argued that the international court could be used for frivolous or politically motivated prosecutions of American troops. It had also threatened to end any U.S. involvement in U.N. peacekeeping operations if it did not get an exemption for Americans.

William Pace, head of the Coalition for an International Criminal Court, which represents more than 1,000 organizations supporting the tribunal, called the U.S. decision "a victory for international justice."

The court can prosecute cases of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity committed after it was established July 1, 2002 - the culmination of a campaign for a permanent war crimes tribunal that began with the Nuremberg trials after World War II.

But it is a court of last resort and will step in only when countries are unwilling or unable to dispense justice themselves, a condition that makes it highly unlikely that an American would be prosecuted.

Shukan ST: July 2, 2004

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