On 24 July, Asymmetrical Haircuts released a new episode of their podcast covering the Standing Group on Atrocity Crimes. Hear from Aarif Abraham, barrister at Doughty Street Chambers and trustee of the Coalition for Genocide Response, Dr Ewelina Ochab, senior lawyer for International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute and co-founder of the Coalition for Genocide Response, and Professor Christine Chinkin.
On 14 July 2025, in the United Kingdom’s Houses of Parliament, the Coalition for Genocide Response, together with the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) and the Accountability Unit, launched a new initiative — the Standing Group on Atrocity Crimes (Standing Group). Comprising a group of leading international lawyers, cross-party parliamentarians and policy advisers, the Standing Group has been set up to convene an independent review of, and provide comprehensive advice on, the UK approach to atrocity prevention and response.
The Standing Group’s work comes at a time when mass atrocities across the world, including the crime of aggression, war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, are becoming prominent and seemingly permanent. According to the Global Peace Index report from 2024, more than 100 countries had been at least partly involved in some form of external conflict in the past five years, up from 59 in 2008. Between 2000 and 2020, almost one-fifth of countries experienced mass atrocities or raised the serious concern that they could take place.
The Standing Group’s aim is to make timely, impactful, and expert recommendations to government officials, policymakers, and civil society to help bring the UK government closer to creating a comprehensive framework to prevent and respond to international crimes in line with its existing international obligations.
Dr Ewelina Ochab, co-founder of the Coalition for Genocide Response, commented: ‘Atrocity crimes, including those meeting the legal definition of genocide, are more common than one would think. More than seven decades after the adoption of the Genocide Convention, three decades after the commitment to the Responsibility to Protect, two decades after the establishment of the International Criminal Court, we, as the international community, have been failing victims/survivors globally. We fail victims/survivors in that we continue to ignore early warning signs and risk factors of atrocity as they unravel before our eyes. We fail victims/survivors in that we affirm the perpetrators in the message that they can get away with their crimes. We fail victims/survivors in that we leave them without assistance to reestablish their lives, and under the constant fear of the recurrence of the crimes.’ She added: ‘The problem is not going to fix itself. Atrocity crimes prevention cannot be left to chance. Mechanisms for monitoring and analysis are key. Perpetrators will not hand themselves in to the authorities. Proactive documentation, investigation and effective prosecutions must prevail. We cannot wait decades more before taking stock and recognising that more needs to be done. We know it too well now and we must act accordingly.’
At the time of publication (14 July 2025), members of the Executive Committee include:
· Baroness Kennedy of the Shaws LT KC, Chair of the Standing Group, Patron of the Coalition for Genocide Response
· Dr Ewelina Ochab, Co-Convener of the Standing Group, IBAHRI senior programme lawyer, Co-founder of the Coalition for Genocide Response
· Aarif Abrahan, Co-Convener of the Standing Group, barrister at Doughty Street Chambers, Trustee of the Coalition for Genocide Response
· Oleksandra Matviichuk, Head, Center for Civil Liberties (Ukraine), Nobel Peace Prize Laureate (2022)
· Professor Fernand de Varennes, Visiting Professor at the University of Sarajevo and Université Catholique de Lyon and former United Nations Special Rapporteur on minority issues
· Professor Payam Akhavan LLM SJD (Harvard) OOnt FRSC, Professor of International Law, Senior Fellow and the inaugural holder of the Chair in Human Rights at Massey College, University of Toronto, and Special Advisor on Genocide to the Prosecutor of the ICC;
· Professor Christine Chinkin CMG FBA, Emerita Professor of International Law, Professorial Research Fellow and Founding Director of the Centre of Women Peace & Security at LSE;
· Federica D’Alessandra, Deputy Director at the Oxford Institute for Ethics, Law, and Armed Conflict and Director of the Oxford Programme on International Peace and Security;
· Alistair Fernie, Chief Executive at The Elders Foundation;
· Andrew Gilmour CMG, Senior Adviser at the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, Former UN Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights (2016-2019) and Former CEO at the Berghof Foundation;
· Wayne Jordash KC, Managing Partner at Global Rights Compliance
· Jason McCue, Senior Partner of McCue Jury & Partners LLP and Co-Founder of EBRO Global; and
· Rupert Skilbeck, Director of REDRESS
As of 14 July 2025, the Advisory Board Members are:
· Lord David Alton KCSG, Patron of the Coalition for Genocide Response
· Lord Alfred Dubs
· Richard Foord MP
· Baroness Arminka Helić
· Baroness Fiona Hodgson CBE
· Blair McDougall MP
· Brendan O’Hara MP
· Baroness Liz Sugg CBE
· David Taylor MP
· Melanie Ward MP
· Luke de Pulford, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, Co-founder of the Coalition for Genocide Response.
· James Jennion, Co-Director of the Labour Campaign for Human Rights.
In May 2025, the Joint Committee on Human Rights published its report looking into the UK responses to the Daesh crimes, including investigating and prosecuting Daesh members upon their return to the UK.
The report made several findings and recommendations pertaining to justice and accountability, including:
We welcome the Government’s commitment to achieve justice for survivors of Daesh crimes. However, not a single Daesh fighter has been successfully prosecuted in the UK for committing international crimes, such as genocide. (Conclusion, Paragraph 36)
Terrorism charges do not capture the nature and scale of crimes committed against victims. Where there is sufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction for international crimes, individuals should be prosecuted for such crimes. (Recommendation, Paragraph 37)
The Government has told us that the most appropriate forums for prosecuting individuals are the jurisdictions where the crimes were committed. Given the concerns with regard to fair trial rights, capacity, and resources, we must not rely on other countries to investigate and prosecute individuals for international crimes. Where the UK has jurisdiction over international crimes, the UK should seek to investigate and prosecute such crimes. (Conclusion, Paragraph 44)
Where the UK has jurisdiction over international crimes, the UK should seek to investigate and prosecute such crimes. (Recommendation, Paragraph 44)
The UK legal framework applicable to international crimes is inconsistent. Whilst it is possible to prosecute individuals for torture and grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions committed abroad, it is not possible to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, or other war crimes committed abroad, unless the individuals are UK nationals, UK residents, or subject to service personnel laws. This creates a key barrier to the exercise of the principle of universal jurisdiction in the UK. (Conclusion, Paragraph 50)
The Government should amend the International Criminal Court Act 2001 to remove the requirements of UK nationality and residency. The relevant guidelines should also be amended to ensure that presence in the UK is not 33 a prerequisite to initiating an investigation. This would help to close the impunity gap by ensuring that the UK can exercise universal jurisdiction over the international crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. To achieve this, the Committee proposes an amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill, which in turn amends the International Criminal Court Act 2001 (see Annex). (Recommendation, Paragraph 51)
There is a lack of cooperation between UK investigative and prosecuting bodies, such as the War Crimes Unit of the Metropolitan Police, and the Crown Prosecution Service. (Conclusion, Paragraph 60)
The Government should prioritise the establishment of a clear framework to allow for greater cooperation between UK’s relevant national bodies and between the UK and other mechanisms involved in the gathering and preserving of evidence. It should also identify the barriers to undertaking structural investigations and identify how this could be changed and improved. (Recommendation, Paragraph 60)
With the closure of UNITAD, it is imperative that the evidence gathered is not lost, and that new evidence can still be collected as needed. (Conclusion, Paragraph 61)
We urge the Government to use its influence to ensure that such valuable evidence is not lost and that it is kept safe from both state and non- state actors who could put the lives of survivors at risk. The Government should also employ efforts to ensure that this evidence, as well as any future evidence collected of Daesh crimes, is effectively analysed and used to aid investigations and prosecutions globally. (Recommendation, Paragraph 61)
January 27, 2025, marks the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi German concentration and extermination camp Auschwitz-Birkenau. Over one million people were murdered there, most of them were Jews, but also Poles, Roma, Soviet prisoners of war and people of other nationalities.
Auschwitz was the biggest Nazi camp. The camp was founded in early 1940 in response to the growing number of arrests and the overcrowding of prisons and other institutions across Europe. The first prisoners were Poles. However, in 1942, Auschwitz was turned from a concentration camp into a death camp (extermination camp) for the purposes of “Endlösung der Judenfrage” (the final solution to the Jewish question). Over the years of its existence, the camp significantly expanded to become a complex consisting of three parts: Auschwitz I, Auschwitz II-Birkenau and Auschwitz III-Monowitz. Ultimately, over a million people lost their lives in the Auschwitz-Birkenau complex before Soviet troops liberated the few survivors on January 27, 1945… (Full article here:https://www.forbes.com/sites/ewelinaochab/2025/01/25/80-years-after-liberation-of-auschwitz-birkenau/)
On 19 December, the House of Lords will debate the policy towards China, especially in relation to human rights and security issues arising from China’s actions in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Tibet, and the South China Sea, and against the Uyghurs in Xinjiang.
The Coalition for Genocide Response, together with the IBAHRI, produced a briefing commenting on the situation of the Uyghur community and called for comprehensive responses from the UK government.
