What’s the point of international law? | Start Here

From the Gaza war to Ukraine – the role of international law has been under intense scrutiny recently. What exactly is international law? How does it work? And what’s the point of it, if so often it doesn’t seem to lead to the accountability and justice that many people want? Sandra Gathmann takes #AJStartHere to The Hague – the home of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and International Criminal Court (ICC) – to explain.


Chapters:

00:56 - What is international law?
02:18 - Why international law is so complicated
03:49 - How the International Court of Justice (ICJ) works
06:22 - Why is it so hard to enforce international law?
07:01 - Why so much of international law comes down to politics
10:24 - How the International Criminal Court (ICC) works
11:34 - Criticisms of the ICC
12:34 - The significance of ICC’s arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin
13:02 - How the ICC’s jurisdiction works
14:29 - Why international law often takes time

This episode features:

Phoebe Okowa
Professor of Public International Law, Queen Mary University of London
UN International Law Commission Member

Devika Hovell
Associate Professor of Public International Law, London School of Economics

Agnès Callamard
Secretary General, Amnesty International

Molly Quell
Senior Legal Correspondent, Courthouse News Service, The Hague

Judge Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf
Member of the International Court of Justice

Fadi El Abdallah
ICC Spokesperson

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And let us know in the comments if there’s a topic you find confusing and would like Start Here to cover ⤵️

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