Short answers, pulled from the story.
The International Criminal Court is an intergovernmental organisation and international tribunal seated in The Hague, Netherlands. Established in 2002 under the Rome Statute, it is the first and only permanent international court with jurisdiction to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression.
China, India, Russia, and the United States are not party to the Rome Statute and do not recognise the Court's jurisdiction. As of October 2024 there are 125 states parties to the treaty, while 41 states have neither signed nor become parties.
On the 17th of March 2023, the Court's judges issued arrest warrants for Russian president Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova for child abductions during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. Putin became the first head of state of a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council to be the subject of an ICC arrest warrant.
The International Criminal Court prosecutes four primary crimes listed in the Rome Statute: genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression. Article 8 alone lists 74 war crimes, and a fifth category under article 70 covers offences against the administration of justice.
The Rome Statute was adopted on the 17th of July 1998 by a vote of 120 to seven, with 21 countries abstaining. After 60 ratifications, it entered into force on the 1st of July 2002, and the International Criminal Court was formally established.
The International Criminal Court issued its first judgment in 2012, when it found Congolese rebel leader Thomas Lubanga Dyilo guilty of war crimes related to using child soldiers. He was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment, and the Court later ordered reparations against him.
The International Criminal Court has been criticised for questions over its legitimacy, concerns about national sovereignty, and alleged susceptibility to political influence. It has also been accused of bias and of disproportionately targeting African leaders, and critics point to its reliance on state cooperation for arrests, its small number of convictions, and the high cost of its proceedings.