The Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Louis Moreno-Ocampo, has asked the National Transitional Council of Libya what steps the government is taking to investigate war crimes committed by all sides during the rebellion.
He said: "The death of Muammar Gaddafi is one of the issues to be clarified - what happened - because there are serious suspicions that it was a war crime."
Mr Moerno-Ocampo said the plans of the NTC would determine the actions of the ICC.
If the NTC proves to be unwilling to act on war crimes committed by the rebels or is unable to provide free and fair trials for members of the Gaddafi regime, the ICC will be forced to step in under the Rome statute that established the war crimes tribunal.
The ICC is also coordinating closely with the NTC on the case of Gaddafi’s son Saif al-Islam.
Mr Moreno-Ocampo said the Libyan authorities told him it was "very important" for them to prosecute Saif al-Islam themselves because he was "the face of the old regime" and "they would like to show they can do better than with Muammar" and conduct a proper trial.
We need your support
Sri Lanka is one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a journalist. Tamil journalists are particularly at threat, with at least 41 media workers known to have been killed by the Sri Lankan state or its paramilitaries during and after the armed conflict.
Despite the risks, our team on the ground remain committed to providing detailed and accurate reporting of developments in the Tamil homeland, across the island and around the world, as well as providing expert analysis and insight from the Tamil point of view
We need your support in keeping our journalism going. Support our work today.
For more ways to donate visit https://donate.tamilguardian.com.
