Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court
Article 15 ter6
Exercise of jurisdiction over the crime of aggression
(Security Council referral)
1.
The Court may exercise jurisdiction over the crime of aggression in accordance with
article 13, paragraph (b), subject to the provisions of this article.
2.
The Court may exercise jurisdiction only with respect to crimes of aggression
committed one year after the ratification or acceptance of the amendments by thirty
States Parties.
3.
The Court shall exercise jurisdiction over the crime of aggression in accordance with
this article, subject to a decision to be taken after 1 January 2017 by the same majority
of States Parties as is required for the adoption of an amendment to the Statute.
4.
A determination of an act of aggression by an organ outside the Court shall be
without prejudice to the Court’s own findings under this Statute.
5.
This article is without prejudice to the provisions relating to the exercise of jurisdiction
with respect to other crimes referred to in article 5.
Article 16
Deferral of investigation or prosecution
No investigation or prosecution may be commenced or proceeded with under this Statute for
a period of 12 months after the Security Council, in a resolution adopted under Chapter VII of
the Charter of the United Nations, has requested the Court to that effect; that request may be
renewed by the Council under the same conditions.
Article 17
Issues of admissibility
1.
2.
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Having regard to paragraph 10 of the Preamble and article 1, the Court shall determine
that a case is inadmissible where:
(a)
The case is being investigated or prosecuted by a State which has jurisdiction
over it, unless the State is unwilling or unable genuinely to carry out the
investigation or prosecution;
(b)
The case has been investigated by a State which has jurisdiction over it and
the State has decided not to prosecute the person concerned, unless the
decision resulted from the unwillingness or inability of the State genuinely
to prosecute;
(c)
The person concerned has already been tried for conduct which is the subject
of the complaint, and a trial by the Court is not permitted under article 20,
paragraph 3;
(d)
The case is not of sufficient gravity to justify further action by the Court.
In order to determine unwillingness in a particular case, the Court shall consider,
having regard to the principles of due process recognized by international law,
whether one or more of the following exist, as applicable:
Inserted by resolution RC/Res.6 of 11 June 2010.
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