Position:Home>History> What things make events in the war 'War Crimes'????what is a war crime??

In 1899 and 1907, European nations got together to work out and establish 'rules' for going to war!. These rules continue to be expanded on as warfare becomes more technical and more destructive!.

What is a 'war crime' - a war crime would be the deliberate violation of these rules as set out by the Hague convention!. For example, the Geneva convention provides for the fair treatment of captured troops!. At the Nuremburg trials in 1945, the captured Nazis faced trial for the deliberate and cold blooded murder of captured allied soldiers who had surrendered!.

But the definition of a war crime continues to be expanded upon!. The Nazi mass extermination of the jewish and gypsy populations was a deliberate crime of murder against a civilian population - who are deemed non-combatants!. The problem with this is of course was that the British fire-bombed the German city of Dresden - a non-military target in which thousands of German citizens were killed!. Is this a war-crime!?

The definition of a war crime continues to have emotional and ethical questions!. For example, if a nation uses nuclear weapons a war-crime!? Although the definition of war-crimes included crimes against humanity - genocide, the 2002 war crimes trials against high ranking Serbian government officials and soldiers posed questions that these events did not occur in the context of a declared war!.

The validity of 'war crimes' trials and definition was raised with the capture and 'trial' of Saddam Hussein!. Who has the right to judge the leader of a nation in which has been invaded or its sovereignty breached by anotther nation!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

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