crimes against humanity

Acts such as murder, torture or persecution committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack on a civilian population, defined in Article 7 of the Rome Statute. Unlike war crimes, they can happen in peacetime. Random or isolated acts do not qualify.

Documented cases: the Nuremberg tribunal's 1946 judgment established crimes against humanity as crimes under international law, and 19 defendants were convicted. In the 1947 Doctors' Trial, 16 German physicians and administrators were convicted, including for the Nazi “euthanasia” programme, and 7 were sentenced to death. In 2014 the Khmer Rouge tribunal convicted two senior leaders for the forced emptying of Cambodia's cities. In 2021 the International Criminal Court convicted a Ugandan commander on 61 counts of crimes against humanity and war crimes, with a sentence of 25 years.

Related terms: war crimes, atrocities, Nuremberg Code, International Criminal Court

Sources: Definitions — UN Office on Genocide Prevention · International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg — USHMM · The Doctors Trial — USHMM · The Khmer Rouge cases — USHMM · ICC sentences Ongwen — UN News