This comprehensive reference work serves as an important resource for anyone interested in the international prosecution of war crimes and how it has evolved.

War Crimes and Trials analyzes the evolution of war crime trials through primary sources. Beginning with a general discussion of why regulations for war have evolved, it then illustrates the resulting changes in the nature and consequences of war as well as attitudes toward war as a part of international life. Moreover, it contextualizes contemporary rules that pertain to both international and non-international armed conflicts.

The heart of the book focuses on 12 World War II cases central to the development of war law over the next 50 years, including the Nuremberg and Tokyo trials of major war criminals. It additionally dedicates discussion to the evolution of the law after World War II as set in motion by the United Nations, the 1949 Geneva Conventions and amendments, the background and operation of the ad hoc international criminal courts, and the creation of the permanent International Criminal Court, illustrating problems and successes through 12 cases drawn from these four courts.

Preface
Prelude: Purposes and Plan of the Book
Abbreviations and Legal Terms
1 What Is a War Crime?
War and Armed Conflict
Law and War
Pre–World War I: Evolution of Contemporary Law
Document: Geneva Convention
The Lieber Code and the American Civil War
Document: The Lieber Code (General Orders No. 100)
The 1899 and 1907 Hague Conventions
Document: List of 1907 Hague Conventions
Document: 1907 Hague Convention IV: Annex
Document: 1907 Hague Convention X
Naval Warfare
Document: Manual of the Laws of Naval War
References
2 World War I: Leipzig
Document: Report, Commission on the Responsibility of the Authors of the War and on Enforcement of Penalties
Document: Treaty of Versailles
Trials
Trial Summaries #1: The Dover Castle and the Llandovery Castle
Document: Dover Castle
Document: Llandovery Castle
Superior Orders as a Defense
References
3 Between World War I and World War II
The League of Nations
Document: Covenant of the League of Nations
Why Did the League Fail?
The Kellogg-Briand Pact: Regulating the jus ad bellum
Document: Kellogg-Briand Pact—Treaty between the United States and Other Powers Providing for the Renunciation of War as an Instrument of National Policy
What Did Kellogg-Briand Accomplish?
Extending the Scope of the jus in bello
Chemical and Biological Weapons
Document: Protocol for the Prohibition of the Use in War of Asphyxiating Gas and of Bacteriological Methods of Warfare
Prisoners of War (POWs)
Document: Convention of July 27, 1929, Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War
References
4 World War II
What Caused World War II?
Germany
War Crimes
Nazi Party Organizations
Trials
References
5 Anton Dostler Case
Document: The Führerbefehl of 18 October, 1942
Trial Summary #2: The Dostler Case
Document: The Anton Dostler Case
The Importance of the Ruling on Jurisdiction
Reprisals
Superior Orders as a Defense
Reference
6 German Concentration and Extermination Camps
The "Final Solution"
References
7 Zyklon B Trial
Fritz Haber
What Is Zyklon B?
Fritz Haber and the Nazis
Preparing for the "Final Solution"
Trial Summary #3: The Zyklon B Case
Document: The Zyklon B Case
Setting the Stage for the Defense
Some Additional Notes for Future Reference
References
8 Belsen Trial
Charges
Trial Summary #4: Belsen Trial
Document: Belsen Trial: Josef Kramer and 44 Others
Some Observations about the Testimony
A Note on Camp Organization
References
9 Buchenwald Trial
Defendants
Trial Summary #5: Buchenwald Trial
Document: Buchenwald Trial (United States of America v. Josias Prince zu Waldeck et al.)
Some Additional Findings of the Court
References
10 The Malmedy Massacre Trial
Malmedy
Trial Summary #6: Malmedy Massacre
Document: Malmedy Massacre (United States v. Valentin Bersin, et al.)
The Rest of the Story
References
11 The Nuremberg Trial
Document: International Conference on Military Trials (London Charter)
A Note on the Tokyo Trials
Nuremberg: Jurisdiction and Procedure
Nuremberg
Hermann Göring
Rudolf Höss (Hoess)
Trial Summary #7: Trial of the Major War Criminals
Was the Nuremberg Trial an Exercise in Victor's Justice?
Significance
References
12 Allied Control Council Law No. 10
Document: Allied Control Council Law No. 10 (CCL no. 10)—Punishment of Persons Guilty of War Crimes, Crimes against Peace and against Humanity
References
13 The Medical Case (Doctors' Trial): United States v. Karl Brandt, et al.
Trial Summary #8: The Medical Case
Document: United States v. Karl Brandt, et al.
Why?
References
14 Einsatzgruppen Case: United States of America v. Otto Ohlendorf, et al.
Otto Ohlendorf
Trial Summary #9: Einsatzgruppen Case
Document: United States v. Otto Ohlendorf, et al.
Discussion
A Curious Defense
References
15 Tokyo War Crimes Trial
International Military Tribunal for the Far East
Document: Charter of the International Military Tribunal for the Far East
Alliance with Germany
The War in the Pacific
Emperor Hirohito
General Hideki Tojo
Composition of the Court
Trial Summary #10: Trial of Major Japanese War Criminals
Document: Trial of Major Japanese War Criminals
The Tokyo Trials and Victor's Justice
References
16 General Tomoyuki Yamashita
The Yamashita Case: Command Responsibility
Trial Summary #11: Trial of General Tomoyuki Yamashita
Document: In Re Yamashita 327 U.S. 1 (1946)
The Rest of the Story
References
17 Khabarovsk War Crime Trial
Japanese Bacteriological Weapons Program
Shiro Ishii and Unit 731
General Otozo Yamada
Trial Summary #12: General Otozo Yamada and Eleven Others
Document: General Otozo Yamada and Eleven Others
Testimony
War Crimes and the Politics of Self-Interest
References
18 The Eichmann Trial
The Eichmann Saga
The Wannsee Conference
Implementing the "Final Solution"
Trial Summary #13: Karl Adolf Eichmann
Document: The Attorney General v. Adolf Eichmann
Testimony
Some Questions without Good Answers
References
19 My Lai Massacre: Vietnam War
Conscription (The Draft)
The Defendant
Army Operations in Vietnam
The My Lai Operation
The Investigation
The Uniform Code of Military Justice
Document: The Uniform Code of Military Justice
Trial Summary #14: United States v. Calley
Document: United States v. William Laws Calley Jr.
Aftermath
Changes
References
20 Updating the Rules of War after World War II
What Changed?
The United Nations Charter
Document: The Charter of the United Nations
The Geneva Conventions
Document: The 1949 Geneva Conventions
Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Conditions of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field of August 12, 1949 (Geneva I)
Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Conditions of Wounded, Sick, and Shipwrecked Members of Armed Forces at Sea of August 12, 1949 (Geneva II)
Geneva Convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War of August 12, 1949 (Geneva III)
Geneva Convention for the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War of August 12, 1949 (Geneva IV)
The Common Articles
The Additional Protocols
Document: Geneva Protocol Additional I
Document: Geneva Protocol Additional II
Document: Protocol Additional III (2005)
Grave Breaches and War Crimes
Moving from the Law on the Books to Making the Law Work in Action
References
21 The Genocide Convention
The Genocide Convention: The Politics of Definition
Document: Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide
Innovations and Problems
References
22 The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Mandate
Document: The Statute of the International Tribunal for the Prosecution of the Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991
Structure
The Appeals Chamber
Office of the Prosecutor and the Registry
Mechanism for International Tribunals
Guilty Pleas
Problems
References
23 Duško Tadic Trial
Introduction: The Bosnian Wars
Duško Tadic
International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991
Document: Rules of Procedure and Evidence
What Is the Purpose of a Trial?
Trial Summary #15: Prosecutor v. Duško Tadic (aka "Dule")
Document: Opening Statement by Presiding Judge Gabrielle Kirk McDonald
Testimony
Why Tadic?
References
24 Slobodan Miloševic
The Dayton Agreement
Kosovo and "The Turks"
Indictment and Transfer
Trial Summary #16: Prosecutor v. Slobodan Miloševic
Testimony
Document: Evidence That the Yugoslav Military had Investigated and Prosecuted War Crimes
A Mixed Legacy
References
25 Radovan Karadžic
The Tribulations of Trials
Trial Summary #17: Prosecutor v. Radovan Karadžic
Document: Prosecutor v. Radovan Karadžic
Testimony
Second Witness
Timely Justice and the Requirement of "Fair" Trials
The Appeals Process
Document: Radovan Karadžic's Appeal Brief
References
26 Trial of Radislav Krstic
Bosnian Serb Army
Radislav Krstic
Srebrenica
Trial Summary #18: Prosecutor v. Radislav Krstic
Document: Prosecutor v. Radislav Krstic
Testimony
The Appeal
References
27 Croatia, Operation Storm, and Ante Gotovina
Croatia
Document: Operation Storm: Croatia's Triumph, Serbia's Grief
Balkan Transitional Justice
Croatia and the ICTY
Ante Gotovina, Ivan Cermak, and Mladen Markac
Trial Summary #19: Appeal of Ante Gotovina and Mladen Markac
Document: Summary of Appeals Judgment
Issues for the Future
Politics and the Law
References
28 Rwanda: The Genocide
Setting the Stage: The Colonial Legacy
Prelude to Genocide
Refugees and the Rwandan Patriotic Front
The Situation in Rwanda
Document: Hutu Ten Commandments
Preparation
The Spark
The Genocide Begins
The RPF Advance
The Whims of International Response
The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
References
29 The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda: Jean-Paul Akayesu
The Politics of Places
Establishing Genocide
Document: Analysis Framework to Determine If Genocide Has Occurred
Trial Summary #20: Prosecutor v. Jean-Paul Akayesu
Document: Prosecutor v. Jean-Paul Akayesu
Testimony
Notable Firsts
Defending Accusations of Genocide
Decision
References
30 Prosecutor v. Théoneste Bagosora, et al. (The Military Trial 1)
Théoneste Bagosora
Gratien Kabiligi
Aloys Ntabakuze
Anatole Nsengiyumva
Trial Summary #21: Prosecutor v. Théoneste Bagosora, Gratien Kabiligi, Aloys Ntabakuze, and Anatole Nsengiyumva
Document: ICTR-98-41-T
Testimony
The Problem of Punishment
Nature of Sentences
References
31 Prosecutor v. Jean-Bosco Barayagwiza, Ferdinand Nahimana, and Hassan Ngeze
The Media Trial
Jean-Bosco Barayagwiza
A Lesson in Legal Procedure
Ferdinand Nahimana
Hassan Ngeze
Trial Summary #22: Prosecutor v. Jean-Bosco Barayagwiza, Ferdinand Nahimana, and Hassan Ngeze
Document: "Judgement and Sentence," December 3, 2003 (paras. 392–398; 408–409)
Testimony
The Power of the Media in a Closed Environment
A Final Note on the ICTR
References
32 The Special Court for Sierra Leone: The Charles Taylor Trial
Background: Liberia and Sierra Leone
Liberia
Sierra Leone and Liberia
Document: Statute of the Special Court for Sierra Leone
The Statute
Charles Taylor Indictment
Trial Summary #23: Prosecutor v. Charles Ghankay Taylor
Document: Prosecutor v. Charles Ghankay Taylor
Testimony
Appeal
The Residual Special Court
References
33 The International Criminal Court
Politics and Promise
Document: Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court
A Note on Other Courts
Structure and Jurisdiction
How Do Cases Come to the Court?
Article 16: Deferral of Investigation and Prosecution
Article 9: Elements of Crimes
Document: Elements of Crimes: Crimes against Humanity
Article 7: Crimes against Humanity
The United States and the ICC
Other Crises: The Politics of Prosecution
Deferred Issue: The Crime of Aggression
Document: Jurisdiction over the Crime of Aggression
Activation
Document: Elements of Crimes: Aggression
References
34 Prosecutor v. Thomas Lubanga Dyilo
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Referral and Arrest
Warrant of Arrest
Warrant for Thomas Lubanga Dyilo
Document: Warrant of Arrest, Situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the Case of the Prosecutor v. Thomas Lubanga Dyilo
Legal Issues Prior to the Trial
The First Stay of Trial Proceedings
The Second Stay of Trial Proceedings
Trial Summary #24: Prosecutor v. Thomas Lubanga Dyilo
Document: XI. Individual Criminal Responsibility of Thomas Lubanga (Article 25(3)(A) of the Statute
Testimony
Controversy
References
35 Prosecutor v. Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo
Bemba and the First Congo War (1996)
The Second Congo War
Movement toward Peace
Bemba and the 2006 Presidential Election
Indictment and Arrest
Role of the LAC
The Plot to Prevent the Trial
Trial Summary #25: Prosecutor v. Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo
Document: Definition of Command Responsibility
A Crime Not Punished
Appeals Chamber Decision
References
Index