The legal framework

To the extent that the events of September 11 constitute crimes under international – or relevant national – law, those responsible, directly or indirectly, are susceptible to international and/or domestic investigation and prosecution. This chapter focuses on highlighting certain crimes that may have been committed on September 11, the courts or tribunals that have (or might be afforded) jurisdiction over them and the mechanisms that exist to implement and enforce criminal law internationally. The criminal law paradigm is, however, relevant also to the responses to September 11, so far as they constitute crimes under international law for which individuals may be held to account. As in the other chapters that follow, Section A sets out the legal framework while Section B considers questions relating to its application post 9/11.

While individual criminal responsibility under international law is not a new phenomenon, in recent years a system of international justice, with national and international components, has crystallised from the experience of addressing atrocities on the domestic and international planes. The work of the ad hoc international criminal tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda (‘ICTY’ and ‘ICTR’ or ‘the ad hoc tribunals’), the Special Court for Sierra Leone, the adoption of the International Criminal Court Statute and supplementary documents and innovations in domestic law and practice have been the principal contributors.