A critical review of forms of international criminal responsibility in the International Criminal Court with emphasis on case law."
Document Type : Original Article
Author
Department of Law, Faculty of Humanities and Literature, University of Guilan
10.22124/opinion.2026.30263.1038
Abstract
After the issuance of indictments by the International Criminal Court (ICC) against senior military and civilian officials of Russia and Israel in the cases of Ukraine and Palestine, based on Articles 25 and 28 of the ICC Statute, the question arises: What was the role and position of Russian and Israeli leaders in the crimes committed in Ukraine and Palestine, that the ICC, by relying on these two articles and using a selective approach, seeks to establish their responsibility? According to various sections of Article 25(3) of the ICC Statute, different forms of individual criminal responsibility are outlined,. Therefore, with the assertion that Article 25 of the Statute comprehensively establishes international criminal responsibility. This research, conducted through a descriptive-analytical method and based on the ICC Statute and its judicial practice, concludes that by applying similar concepts from domestic law to categorize various forms of perpetrators—such as direct perpetrator, indirect perpetrator, accomplice, and ultimately, the commander’s responsibility under Article 28—it is possible to systematically establish the criminal responsibility of a wide range of individuals involved in international crimes.
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