The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court says his office is starting a preliminary examination of possible war crimes by North Korea in response to complaints from South Korean students and citizens.
Luis Moreno Ocampo told a news conference on Tuesday that no State requested the court’s intervention.
But he said in response to communications from South Korean citizens that his office will decide whether a full-scale investigation should be carried out into the Nov. 23 shelling of South Korea’s Yeonpyeong Island and the sinking of a South Korean warship in March.
He said his office must determine whether the incidents constitute war crimes, if the court has jurisdiction, and if the South Korean government is taking legal action.
