ICC issues arrest warrant for Putin on war crimes charges

World
By William

DEVELOPING STORY,

International Criminal Court judges say an arrest warrant has been issued over alleged involvement of the Russian president in the abduction of children from Ukraine.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin for alleged war crimes in Ukraine.

The court in The Hague said in a statement Friday that the order was issued over Putin’s suspected involvement in the unlawful deportation and transfer of children from occupied territories of Ukraine to Russia.

“There are reasonable grounds to believe that Mr. Putin is individually criminally responsible for the above crimes,” the statement said.

The ICC also issued an arrest warrant for Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, the children’s rights commissioner in the Russian president’s office on similar charges.

There was no immediate comment from Russia following the ICC’s move.

Russia has denied committing atrocities since it invaded Ukraine in February last year.

The arrest warrants came a day after a United Nations-backed investigation accused Russia of committing large-scale war crimes in Ukraine, including the forcible deportation of children in areas it controls.

Ukrainian Attorney General Andriy Kostin welcomed the ICC’s decision.

“The world has received a signal that the Russian regime is criminal and that its leaders and accomplices will be held accountable,” he said in a statement posted on social media. “This is a historic decision for Ukraine and the entire system of international law.”

More to follow…

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