U.S. President Joe Biden signs law empowering prosecution in U.S. of war crimes anywhere in the world

Colombo (News 1st) - There was bad news for perpetrators of war crimes as U.S. President Joe Biden signed into law the “Justice for Victims of War Crimes Act” which authorises the U.S. Department of Justice to prosecute citizens of any country who are in the United States for war crimes committed anywhere in the world.

This is expected to severely restrict the entry into the U.S. of those accused of war crimes in foreign countries.

The US State Department's Ambassador-at-Large for Global Criminal Justice (GCJ), Beth van Schaack, tweeted: "President Biden signed into law the historic 'Justice for Victims of War Crimes Act' giving DOJ jurisdiction to prosecute persons present in the U.S. for war crimes committed anywhere, regardless of the nationality of alleged perpetrator or victim. This law, passed with strong bipartisan support, better aligns the US with our allies and the Geneva Conventions, and gives DOJ the ability to try Russians responsible for war crimes in Ukraine should they come to the US."