Russia Welcomes Potential ICC Investigation of War Crimes in Afghanistan

Russia welcomes potential International Criminal Court (ICC) investigation of war crimes in Afghanistan including those, which could have been committed by the US soldiers, a source in Russian Foreign Ministry said Tuesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda will seek to launch the investigation in coming weeks – after the US presidential elections but until the end of the year, the Foreign Policy magazine reported citing its sources. US officials reportedly visited the Hague to express their concern about the possible investigation.

"If it would be a really objective investigation, it is very good. It is time to deal with this. If it would be an objective investigation, it would be helpful for the United States and the whole world," the source told RIA Novosti.

The prosecutor’s office many times drew attention to alleged abuses of detainees by US personnel in 2003 – 2005. Bensouda is also said to be going to probe the US forces’ attack on Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) facility in Kunduz in 2015 that left 42 people killed including MSF staff members.

The US-led NATO mission in Afghanistan formally ended its operations in December 2014 after a presence in the country since 2001 to help local authorities to defeat the Taliban Islamist movement. Afghanistan, however, continues to be in political and social turmoil as jihadist groups take advantage of the instability in the country.