Tag Archives: politics

Violating international law to get rid of dictators is alluring but wrong – and dangerous

Posted on January 3, 2026 by Mark Kersten

There is an alluring idea that anything – including illegal action – should be taken to protect people from dictators. It is that reasoning that some are tapping into to insist that American military strikes on Venezuela and the kidnapping of President Nicolas Maduro … Continue reading →

Posted in International Law, Iraq, Libya, Ukraine, United Nations, United States, Venezuela, War crimes | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

We need to talk about the “International Stabilization Force”: Canada and others say they’ll support a military intervention to ‘enforce peace’ and protect civilians in Gaza

Posted on October 15, 2025 by Mark Kersten

As the first stage of the peace plan for Gaza takes shape amidst reported breaches of the fragile agreement between Hamas and Israel, a critical question remains: will military forces be used to secure Gaza? While Canada announced its recognition … Continue reading →

Posted in Afghanistan, Canada, Gaza, Israel, Palestine, Peace Negotiations, Peace Processes, Peacebuilding, Responsibiltiy to Protect (R2P), United Nations | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Canada and allies recognize Palestine: what does it mean, what does it change, and will real action to end atrocities and annexation follow?

Posted on September 22, 2025 by Mark Kersten

Amidst the atrocities, annexation efforts, and ignored warnings to stop both, it became impossible to defend the status quo. So, on 21 September 2025, Canada joined 150 other states – including erstwhile Israeli allies, France and the UK – that … Continue reading →

Posted in Apartheid, Canada, Gaza, Genocide, Israel, Palestine, United Nations, United Nations General Assembly | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

To understand Genocide in Gaza and elsewhere, we need to talk about it as a process not an event

Posted on August 2, 2025 by Mark Kersten

A growing consensus of international and Israeli human rights organizations, editorial boards, Israeli Holocaust historians and former Attorney Generals, as well as figures like Romeo Dallaire, have all come to the same conclusion: What is happening in Gaza is a genocide. But it is clear there remains … Continue reading →

Posted in Canada, Darfur, Gaza, Genocide, Holocaust, Holodomor, Indigenous Peoples, International Criminal Court (ICC), Israel, Palestine, Rwandan Genocide, Sudan, Yazidi Genocide | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Sifting through speculation: What we do and don’t know about Canada’s Structural Investigation into the Israel-Hamas War

Posted on July 15, 2025 by Mark Kersten

In the wake of the recent revelation that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) had opened a structural investigation into international crimes committed during the Israeli-Hamas conflict in early 2024, many have projected their gravest fears, and greatest hopes, on what an … Continue reading →

Posted in Canada, Crimes against humanity, Gaza, Genocide, International Criminal Court (ICC), Israel, Palestine, RCMP Structural Investigation, Universal Jurisdiction, War crimes, West Bank | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

There must be consequences: Accountability for war crimes can help stop attacks on hospitals

Posted on July 2, 2025 by Mark Kersten

The doctors assumed that a well-marked hospital would be safe, especially since the warring parties in the region were informed of its existence and its life-saving operations. But they were wrong, and the attacks came in waves. When it was … Continue reading →

Posted in Gaza, International Criminal Court (ICC), International Criminal Justice, International Humanitarian Law, Iran, Palestine, Palestine and the ICC, Russia, Sudan, Ukraine, War crimes | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

The Dynamics and Moral ambiguities of Perpetration: Exploring the Intersection of Individual Agency and Structural Factors in Atrocity Crimes

Posted on June 24, 2025 by Mark Kersten

The following article, by Dr. Mina Rauschenbach, is part of JiC’s ongoing symposium on Alette Smeulers’ new book “Perpetrators of Mass Atrocities Terribly and Terrifyingly Normal?”. Mina is Research Fellow at the Leuven Institute of Criminology (KU Leuven), an independent consultant, and a certified … Continue reading →

Posted in International Criminal Justice, Symposium Introduction - A JiC Symposium on Alette Smeulers'  "Perpetrators of Mass Atrocities Terribly and Terrifyingly Normal? | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

The Traumatized Perpetrator – “I actually murdered somebody. I felt very bad about that and I just wanted to run away.”

Posted on June 19, 2025 by Mark Kersten

The following contribution by Bart Nauta is part of JiC’s ongoing symposium on Alette Smeulers’ new book “Perpetrators of Mass Atrocities Terribly and Terrifyingly Normal?”. Bart is a historian and interdisciplinary researcher at ARQ National Psychotrauma Centre and a PhD … Continue reading →

Posted in Argentina, Crimes against humanity, South Africa, Symposium Introduction - A JiC Symposium on Alette Smeulers'  "Perpetrators of Mass Atrocities Terribly and Terrifyingly Normal?, Vietnam, War crimes | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Introduction – A JiC Symposium on Alette Smeulers’  “Perpetrators of Mass Atrocities Terribly and Terrifyingly Normal?”

Posted on June 18, 2025 by Mark Kersten

What forces make and shape perpetrators of mass atrocities? What makes them tick and ultimately resort to horrific violence? What explains their behaviour, and their decision to resort to the commission of international crimes? What can understanding different motivations and … Continue reading →

Posted in Crimes against humanity, Genocide, International Criminal Justice, Symposium Introduction - A JiC Symposium on Alette Smeulers'  "Perpetrators of Mass Atrocities Terribly and Terrifyingly Normal?, Transitional Justice, War crimes | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Who commits international crimes? A typology of perpetrators

Posted on June 18, 2025 by Mark Kersten

This post is Alette Smeulers‘ introduction to JiC’s symposium on her book, Perpetrators of Mass Atrocities Terribly and Terrifyingly Normal?. Smeulers is a professor at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands. Her research takes an inter- and multidisciplinary approach, … Continue reading →

Posted in Alette Smeulers, International Criminal Justice, Symposium Introduction - A JiC Symposium on Alette Smeulers'  "Perpetrators of Mass Atrocities Terribly and Terrifyingly Normal?, War crimes | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment