On 31 August 2026 Trump posted on Truth Social of the Iranian leadership “They must be tried for war crimes against humanity,” . This statement is undoubtedly correct. Individuals within any state administration that are responsible for war crimes should be held accountable through a rules based global justice system. Which is the case under the current rules based global order, but for one problem. Certain countries, including the United States, have simply declined to sign the Rome Statute, and Trump himself is trying his hardest to dismantle that rules based global justice system: Let me explain how the international court system works: The United Nations court is the International Court of Justice (ICJ), also called the World Court. It settles legal disputes between countries and gives legal advice to UN bodies.Location: It sits at the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands. Its decisions are binding, but the court has no police or military power to force countries to obey. A war crime, however, would be prosecuted by the International Criminal Court (ICC). This was created separately to the United Nations by a multilateral agreement called the Rome Statute in 2002. Unlike the temporary, ad hoc tribunals of the past (like the ICTY for the Balkans or the ICTR for Rwanda), the ICC is the world’s first and only permanent international tribunal established specifically to try individuals for atrocities. It is also located in The Hague, Netherlands. The ICC has jurisdiction over four specific core crimes: war crimes (such as intentionally targeting civilians or using child soldiers), genocide, crimes against humanity, and the crime of aggression. The ICC prosecutes individuals—including heads of state and military commanders—rather than whole governments or countries. The Trigger (Jurisdiction): The ICC can step in to open an investigation through three main pathways: The war crime occurred on the territory of a nation that signed the court's treaty, the Rome Statute; The accused individual is a citizen of a nation that signed the Rome Statute; or if the UN Security Council explicitly refers a situation to the ICC, which grants the court jurisdiction regardless of whether the country involved is a member. The "Last Resort" Rule: Under the principle of complementarity, the ICC will only take a case if a country's domestic legal system is genuinely unwilling or unable to prosecute the crimes itself. The USA is not a signatory to the Rome Statute. Further, as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, it can kybosh any proposed referral to the ICC via the UN. It has the power, therefore, to abuse the system, but not to be subject to its rules. Not content with this morally dubious national position the USA has in relation to the ICC, in recent times Donald Trump has gone further: - signed an executive order authorizing asset freezes and visa restrictions against ICC judges and prosecutors. - sanctioned top ICC figures, including ICC President Tomoko Akane and senior trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye. - pressured other countries to withdraw their support or exit the court entirely. So, how the f... can Trump say to all of us that the Iranian leadership 'must be tried for crimes against humanity?', and nobody blinks an eye-lid?? Wake up everybody. While Trump distracts the media with sensationalist talk about what is right and wrong with everything - the duck above the water that we all see; he is, as usual, manipulating the system to suit his own interest with his feet under the water. After all, there are countless actions of his administration that warrant scrutiny by war crimes investigators. The people of the world should need to speak up in defence of their institutions, lest we risk becoming victims of our own complacency. If we do not speak up, we surely cannot complain if we personally become victims of future war crimes. Vote here to express your support for the ICC.