Articles of War blog symposium on Al Hassan case before ICC: “Islam Itself Is Not on Trial”: Culture and Religion in Al Hassan: Articles of War blog symposium on Al Hassan case before ICC

The case of The Prosecutor v. Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud (Al Hassan case) before the International Criminal Court (ICC) is remarkable for many reasons. As with all cases before the Court, the Al Hassan case brings with it a plethora of cultural norms, values, and practices that must be understood in order to deliberate the facts in context and deliver “justice.” A key challenge for the judges (and perhaps also a point of richness?) is to acquaint themselves with the cultural context of the situation before them, including the languages, beliefs, kinship structures, traditions, and symbols of the place. In the Al Hassan case, these include languages such as Arabic, Tamashek, and Songhai, as well as concepts related to (Sufi) Islam, Islamic law, libraries, Tuareg amulets, talisman, mosques, and mausoleums. To what extent are these cultural issues raised in the case as pleaded? To what extent should they be? How should the judges engage with them in their application of the Rome Statute? And to what extent is Islam itself on trial, as the Prosecution has oft denied (transcript 23 May 2023 p. 5)?