The Switzerland Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has formally charged former Algerian defense minister, Khaled Nezzar, with war crimes and crimes against humanity. These crimes were allegedly committed during the Algerian Civil War, according to an indictment submitted to the country’s Federal Criminal Court (FCC). More specifically, it is suggested that Nezzar violated armed conflict laws as defined by the Geneva Conventions between 1992 and 1994.
The prosecutors also allege that Nezzar “condoned, coordinated or ordered” acts of torture carried out by his subordinates. The OAG announced this charge on Tuesday. The indictment was filed after interrogating a total of 24 people. In it, Nezzar stands accused of violating Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, Articles 4 and 6 of the Second Additional Protocol of 1977 to the Geneva Conventions, Articles 108 and 109 of the Military Criminal Code, and crimes against humanity under Article 264a of the Swiss Criminal Code (SCC).
These proceedings had their origins in a criminal complaint from TRIAL International in 2011. Nezzar was then accused of committing war crimes under Articles 108 and 109 of Switzerland’s Military Criminal Code of 13 June 1927. However, the OAG ultimately decided to drop these charges in 2017, reasoning that the civil war was not an internal armed conflict by definition and hence they lacked the jurisdiction to probe potential war crimes.
The scene changed once more when, upon appeal, the Federal Criminal Court ruled that the hostilities were indeed an internal armed conflict considering their level of violence. As a result, this reinstated the jurisdiction to investigate the war crimes. TRIAL International then posted on social media, announcing they welcomed this recent development. This announcement comes almost twelve years after they initially filed their criminal complaint.
The case of Khaled Nezzar once again highlights the persistent international efforts undertaken to hold individuals accountable for their actions during armed conflicts. This indictment is not only a significant development for the victims of the Algerian civil war but also a crucial step in further establishing the importance of international law and the principles of the Geneva Conventions.