President Biden this past Monday doubled down on his charge that Vladimir Putin's Russian forces were committing war crimes in Ukraine. Biden referenced the grotesque images emerging from Bucha showing Ukrainian citizens, their hands tied behind their backs shot and killed by Russian soldiers, their bodies dumped on the streets. Eye-witnesses describe the discovery of mass graves and reports of looting, rape, and other atrocities. Coming on top of Russian missile strikes on a maternity ward and other residential areas. The latest evidence would seem to cry out for a full-scale investigation for war crimes. But how would a war crimes prosecution actually work? And is there any realistic chance that Putin himself would be held accountable? We talk to Stephen Rapp, who formally served at the State Department as US Ambassador at Large for War Crimes.

GUESTS:

• Stephen Rapp, Fmr. United States Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues in the Office of Global Criminal Justice

HOSTS:

• Michael Isikoff (@Isikoff), Chief Investigative Correspondent, Yahoo News
• Daniel Klaidman (@dklaidman), Editor in Chief, Yahoo News
• Victoria Bassetti (@VBass), fellow, Brennan Center for Justice (contributing co-host)

 

RESOURCES:

• Yahoo News' Dylan Stableford and Colin Campbell's article on Biden claiming Putin should face war crimes - bucha-ukraine-putin-war-crimes-151538960.html">Here.
• Yahoo News explainer: What is a War Crime? - what-is-a-war-crime-yahoo-news-explains-203338260.html">Here.

 

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