Geography and Regional Planning

Geography and Regional Planning

Examining the Criminalization of Ecocide in International Criminal Law: The Jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court and the Requirements for Developing National Laws

Authors
Leila Bashtam 1
Farid Azadbakht 1
Ebad Rouhi 2
1 Department of Law, Ker.C., Islamic Azad University, Kermanshah, Iran.
2 Assistant Professor of Public International Law, Department of Law, Ceyhan University, Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan, Iraq.
10.22034/jgeoq.2025.532556.4294
Abstract
Ecocide is a widespread, long-term, and severe environmental destruction that threatens the survival of ecosystems and species, and its criminalization as an international crime further highlights the need to ensure environmental justice at the global level. Therefore, the development of a comprehensive legal framework to combat ecocide at the national and international levels is of great importance. This study aims to analyze the theoretical and legal foundations of the criminalization of ecocide in international criminal law and its legal and enforcement challenges, as well as to provide legal solutions to promote criminal protection of the environment. The main hypothesis is that the development and adoption of a comprehensive and efficient legal regime at the national and international levels, by removing existing obstacles and strengthening transnational cooperation, will play a vital role in preventing and combating environmental degradation and achieving environmental justice. The results of this descriptive-analytical study show that despite the increasing environmental crises and the urgent need for criminal protection, the criminalization of ecocide faces serious obstacles such as conflict of economic interests, government resistance, the complexity of proving the elements of the crime (especially the psychological element), and the lack of global consensus. However, national efforts in countries such as Russia, Vietnam, and Armenia to criminalize ecocide, as well as international efforts to amend the Statute of the International Criminal Court and develop an independent convention with a precise definition and scientific criteria for the extent and severity of destruction, will open new horizons for environmental responsibility.
Keywords
Ecocide
environmental security
Rome Statute
environment
jurisdiction
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