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NEW YORK, Mar. 18, 2011—“Those responsible for the shelling of a market in Abidjan must be identified and held accountable,” said ICTJ president David Tolbert referring to yesterday’s attack on a food market in Abobo, a suburb of the Ivory Coast’s capital, in which 100 people were killed or wounded...

The Special Tribunal for Lebanon is an internationalized court that will sit in the Netherlands and seek accountability for a specific set of crimes in Lebanon. It remains to be seen whether or how the Tribunal might contribute toward accountability in Lebanon, but it is clear from ex...

This journal article examines challenges to the legitimacy of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL). These challenges include selective impunity, the highly selective nature of the jurisdiction of the STL, and the fears that the STL itself will act as an instrument for foreign powers...

David Tolbert, President of International Center of Transitional Justice: "I join many others in giving a final salute to Nino Cassese. He was man of extraordinary energy, singular determination and extraordinary intellectual talents but at the same time was an unassuming man, with a ready smile, an engaging anecdote and plenty of self-deprecation. Nino was a driving force behind the field of international criminal justice, not only through his leadership of both the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) but through his unstinting writing and advocating on this most crucial of subjects."

Ivory Coast has embarked on a process of addressing the legacy of internal strife that culminated in the violence following the 2010 presidential elections. There seems to be genuine political will to pursue transitional justice through criminal investigations and truth-seeking, but serious challenges remain. Suliman Baldo, head of ICTJ's Africa Program, discusses these developments in our latest podcast. [Download](/sites/default/files/Baldo_ICTJ_Podcast_06072012.mp3) | Duration: 19.07mins | File size: 10.9MB

Though not a state party to the Rome Statute, Cote d’Ivoire accepted the jurisdiction of the ICC through an ad hoc declaration in April 2003, and in December of 2010—in the wake of the post-election crisis—reaffirmed that declaration. It has been more than one year since Cote d’Ivoire began a critical transition from a decade-long civil war that divided the country and led to widespread human rights violations, forced displacement, and loss of civilian lives and property.

As the world marks August 30, the International Day of the Disappeared, we are reminded that forced disappearances and transitional justice share a common history. Indeed, processes working in concert that came to form the field of transitional justice were born from the search for truth and justice about the disappeared.

The latest ICTJ Program Report explores transitional justice issues in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and charts our work in this important and dynamic region. Claudio Cordone, ICTJ’s program director covering the MENA region, discusses individual country scenarios, prospects for transitional justice processes and explains ICTJ’s involvement and impact. Cordone speaks about transitional justice principles being at the root of popular uprisings referred to as “Arab Spring” and the challenges facing societies in their efforts to reckon with legacies of dictatorships and recent violence. He describes ICTJ’s efforts to address the impact of violence on women and promote their participation in transitional justice initiatives. The interview provides a thorough overview of ongoing initiatives and future prospects in Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Syria, Yemen, Lebanon and Israel and Occupied Palestinian Territory.

Cote d’Ivoire has embarked on a process of addressing the legacy of internal strife that culminated in the post-election violence of 2010. On June 12, 2013, ICTJ will co-host high-level talks on strengthening Cote d’Ivoire’s judicial capacity to prosecute serious crimes proscribed by the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Despite the overwhelming number of Lebanon's civilians killed, injured, displaced or otherwise harmed by decades of violence, there remains a near-total lack of official acknowledgment, reparation, truth about serious crimes or accountability for the perpetrators. ICTJ is pleased to release the first in a series of publications that aim to bring the crimes of the past in Lebanon to light.

Join ICTJ and the Center for Global Affairs for a conversation on how the ICC and the African Union can move forward, and what the AU position means for effective prosecutions within Africa and elsewhere.

This report examines the situation of impunity in Lebanon that has persisted since the 1975-1990 war through the lenses of core elements of transitional justice. It analyzes Lebanon’s past experience of ineffective transitional justice measures -- including limited domestic trials, na...

A culture of impunity for serious violations of human rights continues to thrive in Lebanon, says a report released today by ICTJ.

For decades, Lebanese governments have made only partial and ineffective attempts to hold powerful individuals, groups, and foreign states accountable for violations committed on Lebanese soil, including against civilians. The consequences of their failure to act – for victims and Lebanese society – are grave. ICTJ's new report looks at the culture of impunity for serious violations of human rights continues to thrive in Lebanon.

ICTJ President David Tolbert will be a featured speaker at this year’s Al Jazeera Forum in Doha, Qatar. Al Jazeera Forum is the flagship event of Al Jazeera Media Network, at which Al Jazeera showcases its contribution to the world of media and politics.

Lebanon should take firm steps to provide redress to victims of past conflicts and help prevent future violence, ICTJ and Lebanese rights groups said today at a roundtable discussion in Beirut. Lebanese authorities have mostly failed in their responsibility to end ongoing violations and ensure justice and truth for victims of the 1975-1990 war and successive conflicts.

ICTJ convenes a high-level conference in Abidjan to discuss the progress in investigating and prosecuting serious crimes committed in Cote d’Ivoire during the 2010 post-election violence.

In this op-ed, ICTJ President David Tolbert argues that President Alassane Ouattara should use his second term as president to address widespread atrocities committed in Cote d'Ivoire's recent past.

This report offers analysis of the current situation regarding the judicial handling of cases related to the post-election violence in Cote d’Ivoire. It looks at existing legal and political challenges within the domestic proceedings and suggests possible solutions.

The struggle against impunity remains as important –and precarious –as ever as we celebrate International Justice Day on July 17. ICTJ marks the occasion with a look at complementarity, a concept critical to understanding the role that the ICC and national courts play in this struggle.

Prosecution efforts so far have exacerbated, rather than alleviated, ethnic and regional divisions. Credible prosecutions against those most responsible on all sides of the conflict would offer a clear statement to all citizens of Côte d’Ivoire that the justice system is blind to ethnicity and is there to serve and protect all its citizens.

Complementarity is an essential tool in the fight against impunity - by working together, national courts and the ICC can seek justice for the worst crimes. But how is the fight against impunity playing out in Côte d’Ivoire? And how exactly can the Ivorian judiciary and the ICC ensure justice in CDI? A new review of our Handbook on Complementarity examines those questions and assesses how the Handbook can be used in his country.

UN operations are due to end in Côte d’Ivoire next June, but the country must pursue a victim-centered approach to justice even after UNOCI leaves. An ICTJ-organized conference works to prepare government, civil society, and the diplomatic community for the UN departure and chart a way towards justice and a stable peace for all of Côte d’Ivoire.

The Africa Union's resolution to collectively support a strategy to withdraw from the ICC looks more like a machination of those who have instrumentalized an argument against the court to protect themselves from the long arm of justice, write ICTJ's top experts on Africa.