In this Sunday edition: Russian forces kept up their assault on Ukraine on Monday, firing on suburbs around the capital of Kyiv and attacking other cities, even as the two countries held another round of diplomatic talks, which ended without a breakthrough. The fighting, now in its third week, is taking a toll on Ukraine’s civilian population, killing thousands and forcing over 2 million people to flee the country. As Putin continues his relentless campaign to seize Ukraine, the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Hague is closely monitoring the invasion and preparing to prosecute war crimes and crimes against humanity, if and when it comes to that. While there is mounting evidence pointing to Russia’s attack on Ukraine as a “crime of aggression,” which has been recognized as a war crime since 2018, ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan says the court does not have jurisdiction over that crime in Russia or Ukraine as neither country is among the court’s 123 member states. The only way the court could get jurisdiction over the crime of aggression is if the United Nations Security Council calls on the ICC to investigate. But, Khan says, other war crimes carried out in Ukraine may still be under the court’s jurisdiction.
This week on AirTalk, Larry Mantle spoke with the director of the War Crimes Research Office at American University’s Washington College of Law, Susana SáCouto.
Then: Some LA residents have loved ones in both Russia and Ukraine. They say while relatives in Ukraine have experienced bombings and violence, some relatives in Russia don't believe it — instead believing falsehoods disseminated by the state-controlled media.
This week, our immigration reporter Leslie Berenstein Rojas met with some local families to discuss the issue.
This program is made possible in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people.
Support the show: https://laist.com