With the West accusing Russia of war crimes against Ukraine, the International Court of Justice in The Hague decided to rule on the issue on Wednesday.
A week ago, the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor's office announced it would seek approval to launch an investigation into allegations of war crimes in Ukraine.
Prosecutor Karim Khan had on Friday expressed concern over Russia's invasion of Ukraine and said the ICC may investigate allegations of crimes that have arisen in the current crisis.
"The next step is to go through the process of seeking and securing authorization from the Court's Pre-Trial Chamber to begin the investigation," the office of the ICC prosecutor, based in The Hague, said."
A few days earlier, the US ambassador to the United Nations, Linda-Thomas Greenfield, told the BBC that the Kremlin had engaged in war crimes in Ukraine.
"We are working with other members of the global community to x-ray the crimes that Russia has committed against the citizens of Ukraine," the US ambassador said.
What are cluster bombs
Cluster bombs carry small bombs that are programmed to explode in the air (cluster bombs) or on the ground (cluster bombs) or after some time (cluster bombs) as mines. For example, the CBU-87 cluster bomb, which is widely used in NATO operations, contains 202 bombs that are dispersed in the surrounding area. Each will explode, hurling approximately 300 fragments capable of piercing light armor.
The unexploded bombs are seeded into the ground and detonate in unsuspected time, causing serious injuries and deaths. These munitions therefore fall into the same category as mines in terms of post-war casualties.
Clearing the area of unexploded ordnance (UXO) is extremely arduous because they are small in size and can still be found hanging from trees or rooftops and fall to the ground and people much later.
Source: protothema.gr
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