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Universal jurisdiction

News and expert analyses

What is it all about?

Trying people wherever they are, whatever their nationality

Universal jurisdiction enables national judicial systems to try individuals, regardless of their nationality or the place where the crimes were committed. This justice approach deals with international crimes committed a long time ago, as during the civil wars in Liberia, or when no other jurisdiction, international or national, is able or willing to try them,, as in the case of Syria. As with the trials of Rwandans in several European countries (for genocide), the trial of Gambian Ousman Sonko (accused of crimes against humanity in Switzerland) or of Chadian Hissein Habré, tried and convicted in Senegal (for crimes committed in Chad in the 1980s). Discover universal jurisdiction through the news documented by our experts.

Assad trial in France: On July 25, France's highest court rejected the arrest warrant against Bashar al-Assad on the grounds of presidential immunity. Photo: Bashar al-Assad speaks during an interview in Damascus, Syria, in 2014.
Assad trial in France: no... but maybe
25 July 2025 by AFP
On July 25, France's highest court rejected the arrest warrant against Bashar al-Assad on the grounds of presidential immunity. However, it stated that Bashar could be prosecuted in the future as he’s now been removed from power.
Syria / France - When French justice rethinks the impunity of heads of state. Photo: On the steps of the Elysée Palace in Paris, Nicolas Sarkozy and Bashar al-Assad smile as they shake hands. Heads of state immunity under debate
7 July 2025 by Chloé Dubois
On Friday, the highest court of France met to examine the arrest warrant issued in 2023 against former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad – challenged by the public prosecutor on the grounds of immunity protecting heads of state in office.
A doctor walks through the dark corridor of a hospital Life sentence for a Syrian doctor
16 June 2025 by AFP
Alaa Moussa was on trial for multiple crimes against detainees in military hospitals in Damascus and Homs during the Syrian civil war. On 16 June, a German court sentenced him to life imprisonment.
At his trial in Paris (France), Majdi Nema (alias ‘Islam Alloush’) was found guilty of complicity in war crimes committed in Syria. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison. Nema, guilty of his organization’s crimes
2 June 2025 by Chloé Dubois
Majdi Nema, former spokesperson for the Jaysh al-Islam group, has been found guilty by a Paris court. The former Syrian rebel was sentenced to ten years in prison for complicity in war crimes.
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Photo: A lawyer walks through the
23 May 2025 by Chloé Dubois
Majdi Nema: a trial with witnesses in absentia The Paris trial of Syrian Majdi Nema for complicity in war crimes enters its final phase this Friday: the closing arguments. But the absence of many witnesses has weighed heavily on the proceedings.
At the Lundin trial in Sweden, two former executives of the oil company are on trial for alleged complicity in war crimes committed in Sudan. Illustration: Ian Lundin and Alexandre Schneiter are drowned in a pool of oil. Conflict rages in the background.
22 May 2025 by Justice Info
War and oil: Lundin in the dock Oil blood is at the heart of the longest trial in Swedish history, which opened in September 2023. Two men in white collars are in the dock: Ian Lundin and Alexandre Schneiter. Two senior executives of Lundin Oil, accused of complicity in war crimes in Sudan. From the very beginning, Justice Info has been covering this unique trial.
Egbert Wesselink is often considered to be behind the Lundin trial in Sweden. In a report by the Dutch NGO Pax, he revealed the links between the Swedish company Lundin Oil (and 2 other oil companies) and war crimes committed in Sudan between 1990 and 2000.
22 May 2025 by Martin Schibbye
Lundin: Wesselink and the dilemma of proof The trial against Lundin reveals not just the brutality of war, but also the fragility of justice mechanisms built on activism. The role of Egbert Wesselink, the director of the NGO PAX, is emblematic of this broader dilemma.
Syrian Majdi Nema is on trial in France for complicity in war crimes committed in Syria. Photo: Nema in 2019, freshly graduated in Istanbul.
15 May 2025 by Chloé Dubois
Nema, portrait of an ex-rebel “certain of his innocence” Syrian Majdi Nema has been on trial in France since April 29 for complicity in war crimes. This former spokesman for the rebel group Jaysh al-Islam is pleading not-guilty before the Paris Assize Court.
Rohingya women from Myanmar, in Bangladesh.
9 May 2025 by Asymmetrical Haircuts
How Argentina deals with sexual crimes against the Rohingya An Argentine court ordered arrest warrants against Myanmar’s military leadership for genocide against the Rohingya community. But why do we need Argentina when several international institutions are already involved?
A Syrian ex-rebel on trial in France: Majdi Nema.
29 April 2025 by Chloé Dubois
A Syrian rebel on trial in France The war crimes trial of Syrian Majdi Nema, former spokesman and an alleged top leader of the armed rebel group Jaysh al-Islam, opens this Tuesday, April 29, before the Paris Assize Court.
Verdict in the Correa trial in the United States: Michael Sang Correa found guilty on all counts. Photo: Prosecutor J. Bishop Grewell speaks at a press briefing in court in Denver, Colorado.
17 April 2025 by Mariam Sankanu
US jury finds Correa guilty on all counts On Tuesday April 15, 2025, a US court found Michael Sang Correa, a former member of a hit-squad in Gambia, guilty of all torture charges against him. This was an emotional moment for victims present at the trial.
Michael Sang Correa, a former member of the ‘Junglers’ in Gambia, is on trial in the United States on charges of torture under the dictatorship of Yahya Jammeh. Image: illustration showing Correa at his trial, surrounded by lawyers and a witness.
15 April 2025 by Mariam Sankanu
Correa’s ‘confessions’ backfire The torture trial of Gambian Michael Sang Correa closed yesterday, earlier than expected, a week after it started and the hearing of his audio recorded ‘confessions’. Only the prosecution presented witnesses, and Correa decided not to testify himself.
Trial of Michael Sang Correa in the United States for crimes committed in Gambia. Illustration: Correa appears in court surrounded by the various protagonists in his trial.
11 April 2025 by Mariam Sankanu
The Correa trial: fear or zeal? The opening of the trial of Michael Sang Correa seems to clarify the case: the former Gambian hitman does not deny the tortures he was involved in; he says he was forced into it. While the prosecution argues he had a choice and was a willing participant.
Trial of ex-jungler Michael Sang Correa in the United States for acts of torture committed in Gambia. Photo: entrance to the courthouse in Denver.
7 April 2025 by Mariam Sankanu
Former “Jungler” Correa on trial in the U.S. The trial of Michael Sang Correa, an alleged former member of a hit-squad in The Gambia, opens on April 7 in Denver, Colorado. He is the first non-US citizen to be tried under U.S. law for acts of torture committed outside the U.S.
Threats and intimidation at the Lundin trial in Sweden. Photo: George Tai, a witness, tells his story in Juba (Southern Sudan).
3 April 2025 by Martin Schibbye
Threats and intimidation in the Lundin trial Witnesses in the trial of former Lundin Oil executives are alleged to have been the victims of a campaign of threats, intimidation and bribes. New revelations have reopened an investigation into obstruction of justice.
Alexandre Schneiter, former CEO of Lundin Oil, gives his side of the story at his trial in Sweden on charges of complicity in war crimes committed in Sudan. Photo: Schneiter in a video interview for Bloomberg.
24 March 2025 by Martin Schibbye
“I was responsible for what was beneath the surface – not above” At the trial in Sweden of the former executives of Lundin Oil on charges of complicity in war crimes, ex-CEO Alexandre Schneiter explained that he was responsible for drilling, not for security or operational activities.
Voislav Torden (Yan Petrovsky), leader of a group close to Russia, was sentenced to life imprisonment in Finland for war crimes committed in Ukraine. Photo: Torden in military uniform.
14 March 2025 by AFP
War crimes in Ukraine: a Russian sentenced to life in Finland Voislav Torden is the first Russian citizen to be sentenced outside Ukraine for war crimes committed in that country. On Friday March 14, the leader of the Russian-affiliated paramilitary unit “Rusich Group” was sentenced to life [...]
A Swedish documentary film shows Ian Lundin in Sudan surrounded by armed child soldiers. The footage was used in the trial of Swedish company Lundin Oil in Sweden.
6 February 2025 by Martin Schibbye
How Lundin’s filmed trip in Sudan backfired in court This Tuesday February 4, Alexandre Schneiter’s interrogation has started in Stockholm, where two former directors of the Swedish oil company Lundin are tried for complicity in war crimes in Sudan. Before him, until last week, his [...]
Trial of Russian soldier Voislav Torden in Finland for possible war crimes committed in Ukraine. Torden sits on a television screen during his trial, surrounded by his lawyers.
23 January 2025 by Jeanette Björkqvist
Finland on the frontline for trying Russians for war crimes Finland is the stage for an unusual trial, where a 37-year-old Russian citizen is charged with war crimes committed in Ukraine. Voislav Torden is accused of leading an ambush attack in which 22 Ukrainian soldiers were killed, incl [...]
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