WASHINGTON (December 6, 2023) - The United States Department of Justice announced Wednesday war crimes charges against four Russian soldiers accused of torturing an American in the Ukraine war. The charges include torture, mistreatment, and unlawful confinement of an American citizen who was living in Ukraine after Russia’s invasion in 2022. According to The Washington Post, this is the first time the U.S. has brought an indictment based on a war crimes statute passed nearly 30 years ago.
Faculty experts at the George Washington University are available to offer insight, analysis and commentary on the DOJ’s charges. If you would like to speak with an expert, please contact GW Media Relations Specialists Shannon Mitchell at shannon [dot] mitchell
gwu [dot] edu (shannon[dot]mitchell[at]gwu[dot]edu) or Cate Douglass at cdouglassgwu [dot] edu (cdouglass[at]gwu[dot]edu).
Jennifer Wells, an assistant professor of history, specializes in international law and history, with an emphasis on Britain, Ireland, Europe, nation building, and imperial expansion. Wells’ current research projects focus on war crimes, humanitarian law, and how so-called fragile states, failed states, and ungoverned territories are financed through illicit international networks. She has published on a wide range of issues that examine the intersection of history, law, politics, society, and the state, including: international war crimes; terrorism and U.S.-U.K. extradition law; and the coercive powers of the state.
Laura Dickinson, Oswald Symister Colclough Research Professor of Law at the George Washington University Law School. Dickinson is an expert in the law of armed conflict, national security and human rights. She is the author of Outsourcing War and Peace which explores outsourcing of military and security functions and considers the impact of this trend on core public values.
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