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War Crimes : Throughline On today's episode, we travel from the battlefields of the U.S. Civil War, through the rubble of two world wars, to the hallways of the Hague, to see how the modern world has tried to define — and prosecute — war crimes. This episode originally aired at "The Rules of War" in 2024.

To access bonus episodes and listen to Throughline sponsor-free, subscribe to Throughline+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/throughline.

Throughline

Throughline
NPR

Throughline

War Crimes

War Crimes

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Members of the jurysit in the International Court of Justice in The Hague, The Netherlands, on January 27, 2014 during the judgment on the territorial dispute between Chile and Peru. AFP PHOTO/ANP BAS CZERWINSKI netherlands out (Photo credit should read BAS CZERWINSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
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BAS CZERWINSKI/AFP/Getty Images
Members of the jurysit in the International Court of Justice in The Hague, The Netherlands, on January 27, 2014 during the judgment on the territorial dispute between Chile and Peru. AFP PHOTO/ANP BAS CZERWINSKI netherlands out (Photo credit should read BAS CZERWINSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
BAS CZERWINSKI/AFP/Getty Images

On today's episode, we travel from the battlefields of the U.S. Civil War, through the rubble of two world wars, to the hallways of the Hague, to see how the modern world has tried to define — and prosecute — war crimes. This episode originally aired as "The Rules of War" in 2024.

Guests:

Michael Bryant, Professor of History and Legal Studies at Bryant University

David Bosco, author of Rough Justice: The International Criminal Court in a World of Power Politics

To access bonus episodes and listen to Throughline sponsor-free, subscribe to Throughline+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/throughline.