Amal Clooney Speaks Out at the UN: Enough with the Evidence‑Vaults!
What Amal Clooney says matters. In a casual but fiery briefing for the UN Security Council on war crimes in Ukraine, the human‑rights lawyer fired up the room. She slammed the status quo, likening Ukraine to a “slaughterhouse right in the heart of Europe.”
Why the evidence is piling up, and nobody’s getting it out
She reminded everyone of the 2017 Security Council decision, the one she helped push through, that set up a UN squad to gather, protect and stack up evidence of crimes by the Islamic State. Fast‑forward: that evidence is now sitting behind iron doors—because no international court has yet taken on the ISIS case.
Personal, not just political
- “My kids are almost five,” she said, pointing at her little boys, a reminder that the next generation deserves justice.
- “And yet all that hard‑won evidence is still in a storage facility,” she added, like a vault holding secrets that should be on trial.
She wraps up by asking the world that the fight for accountability in Ukraine isn’t a side story—it’s the headline. The message is clear: if justice can’t be delivered, the evidence will only become a relic of disappointment.
Takeaway
Amal Clooney’s urgent call stresses the need for an international court that can finally step into the breach, turning those dusty evidence stores into witness rooms where truths can be heard.
<img alt="" data-caption="Human rights lawyer Amal Clooney attends an informal meeting of the UN Security Council, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, at the UN Headquarters in New York City, New York, US, on April 27, 2022.
PHOTO: Reuters” data-entity-type=”file” data-entity-uuid=”17f88ebb-5e98-4dcf-82dc-6623afe1d1a5″ src=”/sites/default/files/inline-images/20220427_meeting_reuters.jpg”/>
Why the ICC Can’t Crack Down on Iraq or Syria
The International Criminal Court (ICC) is the go‑to body for war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide, and aggression. Unfortunately, it can’t step in for Iraq or Syria because neither country is a member of the Court.
The Aussie‑English Lawyer Taking Charge
- Amal Clooney is leading an international legal task force helping Ukraine secure justice for its victims within national courts while also coordinating with the ICC in The Hague.
ICC Gets Rolling on Ukraine
Just a week after Russia’s Feb 24 invasion, ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan launched an investigation into Ukraine. He told a UN meeting:
“This is a time when we need to mobilize the law and send it into battle. Not on the side of Ukraine against the Russian Federation, or on the side of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, but on the side of humanity,”
Is the ICC Just a Political Tool?
Russian diplomat Sergey Leonidchenko slammed the ICC as a “political instrument.” He went on to accuse the U.S. and Britain of hypocrisy, claiming they support the ICC inquiry in Ukraine while “doing everything imaginable to shield their own military.”
How Moscow Fends Off Accusations
Moscow calls its Feb 24 invasion a “special military operation” and insists it has not targeted civilians. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova is preparing war‑crimes charges against at least seven Russian soldiers.
Key Takeaway
In short, the ICC is a powerful but restricted tool—its reach stops where member states like Iraq and Syria are absent. Diplomats, lawyers, and governments are all in a frantic scramble to balance justice, politics, and the realities on the ground as the conflict rages on.
