News

Javier Ruiz receives the Humanitarian Award of Youth Human Rights International

On 9 August 2026, Youth Human Rights International presented Javier Ruiz, Consultant–Director of EICC, with its Humanitarian Award at a ceremony held in Amsterdam.

In his presentation, "Why become a human rights lawyer?", he addressed the motivations of human rights lawyers today and the role of victims in the Ukraine, Venezuela and Democratic Republic of the Congo cases before the International Criminal Court.

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Directive (EU) 2024/1203 transposition deadline passes: what changes for States and companies

In 2024 the European Union adopted Directive (EU) 2024/1203 on the protection of the environment through criminal law, which criminalizes conduct "comparable to ecocide" and substantially raises penalties. The transposition deadline for Member States expired on 21 May 2026.

A new environmental criminal standard that turns severe environmental damage into a concrete criminal risk for executives and legal persons.

For States, transposition demands more than copying offences: it requires prosecution offices with investigative capacity, cross-border cooperation protocols and a proportionate sanctioning regime. For companies with operations or value chains in Europe, the directive turns environmental due diligence into a matter of criminal liability.

EICC supports ministries and prosecution offices in gap diagnosis and regulatory design, and boards and legal teams in mapping the penal-environmental risk of their operations.

REF. DIRECTIVE (EU) 2024/1203 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL OF 11 APRIL 2024 · TRANSPOSITION DEADLINE: 21 MAY 2026

The crime of aggression, from Nuremberg and Tokyo to the Rome Statute: new book chapter

The edited volume The Tokyo Tribunal Eighty Years Later: Between the Justice and the Construction of a New International Legal Order, coordinated by María del Ángel Iglesias, has been published as an open-access e-book.

Javier Ruiz is the author of Chapter 6, "The Crime of Aggression: From Nuremberg to Tokyo to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court", which traces the evolution of the crime of aggression from the post-war tribunals to its activation within the International Criminal Court system.

REF. "THE TOKYO TRIBUNAL EIGHTY YEARS LATER", CHAPTER 6 · 2026 · OPEN ACCESS

The ICC Prosecutor adopts a Policy on Addressing Environmental Damage through the Rome Statute

On 4 December 2025, on the sidelines of the 24th session of the Assembly of States Parties, the ICC Office of the Prosecutor launched its Policy on Addressing Environmental Damage through the Rome Statute. The policy addresses the environmental dimension of crimes within the Court's jurisdiction (genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes) and recognises that environmental exploitation and degradation can be both a driver and a consequence of those crimes.

For governments, prosecution services and companies, the policy makes environmental damage an element the Office will examine systematically in its preliminary examinations and investigations. The next step, advocated by the ICCBA Working Group on Ecocide, is the inclusion of ecocide as the fifth crime under the Rome Statute.

REF. ICC OFFICE OF THE PROSECUTOR, "POLICY ON ADDRESSING ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE THROUGH THE ROME STATUTE" · 4 DECEMBER 2025

Conference in Buenos Aires on transnational organised crime, INTERPOL and international criminal law

Javier Ruiz took part in Buenos Aires in the conference "Organised and Transnational Crime, INTERPOL and International Criminal Law", held at the Bar Association, alongside colleagues of the international bar such as Ben Keith and Rhys Davies, and with the support of the International Criminal Court.

The working week also included meetings with practitioners and with representatives of the Council of the Judiciary, as part of the dialogue between practice before the ICC and Argentine legal professionals.

Vanuatu, Fiji and Samoa propose adding ecocide to the Rome Statute

In September 2024, Vanuatu, Fiji and Samoa formally proposed adding ecocide as a crime under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. The debate over ecocide as a possible fifth international crime is firmly on the global agenda.

The proposal is part of a broader movement: the 2024 European directive, national laws that already criminalize ecocide, and the work of the ICCBA through its Working Group on Ecocide, of which Javier Ruiz is a member.

Governments that prepare today, with solid legal frameworks, trained prosecution offices and litigation strategies, will be positioned to protect their resources, meet their international obligations and lead.

REF. ROME STATUTE, ARTS. 5 AND 121 · AMENDMENT PROPOSAL SUBMITTED ON 9 SEPTEMBER 2024

Javier Ruiz receives the ICCBA Presidency Award 2024

The International Criminal Court Bar Association (ICCBA) honoured Javier Ruiz, Consultant–Director of EICC, with the 2024 Presidency Award in recognition of his work on ecocide and international environmental crimes.

Javier Ruiz is Assistant to Counsel for the Defence and Victims before the ICC, a member of the ICCBA and of its Working Group on Ecocide.

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Environmental crimes among the world's most lucrative criminal economies

Environmental offences rank among the most lucrative transnational criminal activities in the world. Assessments by UN Environment and INTERPOL have estimated their value at up to USD 258 billion annually, with sustained growth and close links to other forms of organized crime.

Governments today face the dual demand of protecting their natural resources and communities while responding to a body of international environmental law that is evolving rapidly. Those who arrive late will bear higher costs.

REF. UNEP–INTERPOL, "THE RISE OF ENVIRONMENTAL CRIME" (2016) AND SUBSEQUENT UPDATES