Crimes against humanity

International Crimes

Crimes against humanity

Jurisdiction  IMT  ICTY  ICTR ICC  SCSL  ECCC  KSC  IRMCT

Legal Definition

Crime against humanity means any of the following acts when committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack:

(a) Murder;

(b) Extermination;

(c) Enslavement;

(d) Deportation or forcible transfer of population;

(e) Imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty in violation of fundamental rules of international law;

(f) Torture;

(g) Rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, enforced sterilization, or any other form of sexual violence of comparable gravity;

(h) Persecution against any identifiable group or collectivity on political, racial, national, ethnic, cultural, religious, gender, or other grounds that are universally recognized as impermissible under international law, in connection with any act referred to in this paragraph;

(i) Enforced disappearance of persons;

(j) The crime of apartheid;

(k) Other inhumane acts of a similar character intentionally causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or to mental or physical health.

Key Legal Instruments

1945 Charter of the International Military Tribunal (art. 6) 
1993 (last amended 2009) Statute of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (art. 5)
1994 (last amended 2009) Statute of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (art. 3)
1998 (last amended 2024) Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (art. 7)
2002 (last amended 2010) Elements of Crimes of the International Criminal Court (art. 7)
2002 (last amended 2023) Statute of the Special Court for Sierra Leone (art. 2)
2004 (revised in 2007) Law on the establishment of Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia for the prosecution of crimes committed during the period of Democratic Kampuchea (art. 5)
2018 Law on the Specialist Chambers and Specialist  Prosecutor's Office of Kosovo (art. 13)
2019 Draft articles on Prevention and Punishment of Crimes Against Humanity of the International Law Commission 

Cases

Crime against humanity of Murder

International Military Tribunal (IMT)

International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY)

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR)

International Criminal Court (ICC)

Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL)

Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC)

Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC)

Crime against humanity of Extermination

International Military Tribunal (IMT)

International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY)

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR)

International Criminal Court (ICC)

Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL)

Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC)

Crime against humanity of Enslavement

International Military Tribunal (IMT)

International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY)

International Criminal Court (ICC)

Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL)

Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC)

Crime against humanity of  Deportation

International Military Tribunal (IMT)

International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY)

International Criminal Court (ICC)

Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC)

Crime against humanity of Imprisonment

International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY)

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR)

International Criminal Court (ICC)

Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC)

Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC)

Crime against humanity of Torture

International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY)

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR)

International Criminal Court (ICC)

Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC)

Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC)

Crime against humanity of Rape and Sexual violence

International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY)

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR)

International Criminal Court (ICC)

Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL)

Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC)

Crime against humanity of Persecution

International Military Tribunal (IMT)

International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY)

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR)

International Criminal Court (ICC)

Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC)

Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC)

Crime against humanity of  Enforced Disappearance

International Criminal Court (ICC)

Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC)

Crime against humanity of Apartheid

  • No public case have been brought to any international or criminal tribunal regarding the crime against humanity of apartheid

Crime against humanity of Other Inhumane Acts

International Military Tribunal (IMT)

International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY)

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR)

International Criminal Court (ICC)

Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL)

Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC)

Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC)