International Criminal Court hit by cyberattack during NATO summit
The court, which prosecutes genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and the crime of aggression, said in a statement Monday that its alert and response mechanisms quickly detected, confirmed and contained the attack.
"A court-wide impact analysis is being carried out, and steps are already being taken to mitigate any effects of the incident," it said -- but gave no indication of the extent of any damage or sensitive case information that may have been compromised, stolen or lost.
The incident came amid a barrage of so-called distributed denial of service attacks targeting local governments and other Dutch institutions before and during the June 23-24 NATO summit, for which a known pro-Kremlin hacker group claimed responsibility.
Cybersecurity authorities said they also investigating the possible targeting of the train network after services connecting Amsterdam Airport Schiphol to Amsterdam and Utrecht were disrupted on Tuesday due to fire damage to cables.
Dutch Justice Minister David van Weel said he believed the incident "could be sabotage."
The previous ICC incident occurred in September 2023 with the court saying at the time that it had all the hallmarks of espionage, calling it a "serious attempt to undermine the court's mandate."
Following that attack, it instituted a raft of measures in response, reinforcing its risk management framework and identifying actions and procedures in readiness for any potential repercussions including any potential security risk to victims and witnesses, court officials and court operations.
Since the court has been at the center of heated international debate with its rulings, jurisdiction and legitimacy challenged by states that do not recognize it over bias in decisions such as issuing arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Natanyahu and former Defense Minster Yoav Gallant on suspicion of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
That prompted the United States to impose sanctions on the court, U.S. President Donald Trump to issue an executive order sanctioning ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan.
In June, investigations into U.S. personnel who served in Afghanistan and the Israeli warrants, saw the State Department sanction an additional four judges, citing the ICC's court's efforts to "arrest, detain or prosecute a protected person without consent of that person's country of nationality."
Khan, who has had his own issues, stepped aside in May while an investigation into sexual misconduct allegations against him is completed. He insists he has been the victim of targeted campaign to discredit him.
Khan lost access to his Microsoft email at the same time he took his leave of absence in May with the incident providing fresh incentive for a European effort to move to alternate platforms for criticial communications that are not provided by the U.S.-tech giants.
Back in 2023, the court warned of potential disinformation campaigns targeting the ICC and its officials in an effort to "tarnish the ICC image and delegitimize its activities," pointing to criminal proceedings launched against elected officials, including Judges and the prosecutor, and daily hacking attempts.
It also claimed to have foiled at the last minute an operation to infiltrate a "hostile intelligence officer" into the court posing as an intern.
In May 2024, the Guardian published the findings of a year-long special investigation alleging Israel's intelligence agencies had waged a nine-year dirty war againt the ICC involving espionage, hacking and threats in an effort to derail the court's work.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Los Angeles Times
24 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
Ukrainian drone strike kills 1 in Russia ahead of the Trump-Putin summit
KYIV, Ukraine — A Ukrainian drone attack killed one person and wounded two others in a region some 260 miles east of Moscow, a Russian official said Monday, as fighting continued ahead of Friday's Russia-U.S. summit in which President Vladimir Putin seeks a peace deal to lock in Moscow's gains. Nizhny Novgorod region Gov. Gleb Nikitin said in a statement that drones targeted two 'industrial zones' and caused the casualties and unspecified damage. A Ukrainian official said at least four drones launched by the security services, or SBU, struck a plant in Arzamas city that produced components for Kinzhal hypersonic missiles. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss operations, said the Plandin plant produces gyroscopic devices, control systems and on-board computers for the missiles and is an 'absolutely legitimate target' because it is part of the Russian military-industrial complex that works for the war against Ukraine. Russia's Defense Ministry said its air defenses intercepted and destroyed a total of 39 Ukrainian drones overnight and Monday morning over several Russian regions as well as over the Crimean peninsula that Russia annexed in 2014. Friday's summit, which President Trump will host in Alaska, sees Putin unwavering on his demands to keep all the Ukrainian territory his forces now occupy and to prevent Kyiv from joining NATO, with the long-term aim of keeping Ukraine under Moscow's sphere of influence. Putin believes he has the advantage on the ground as Ukrainian forces struggle to hold back Russian advances along the front. On the front lines, few Ukrainian soldiers believe there's an end in sight to the war. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky insists he will never consent to any Russian annexation of Ukrainian territory nor give up his country's bid for NATO membership. European leaders have rallied behind Ukraine, saying peace can't be resolved without Kyiv. With Europeans and Ukrainians so far not invited to the summit, Germany sought to prepare by inviting Trump, Zelensky, the NATO chief and several other European leaders for a virtual meeting on Wednesday. The German chancellery said the talks would seek additional ways to pressure Russia and prepare for peace negotiations and 'related issues of territorial claims and security.' Steffen Meyer, spokesperson for German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, said earlier Monday that the German government 'has always emphasized that borders must not be shifted by force' and that Ukraine should decide its own fate 'independently and autonomously..
The Hill
2 hours ago
- The Hill
Germany invites Trump, Zelenskyy, NATO, EU leaders to a virtual meeting before Trump-Putin summit
BRUSSELS (AP) — German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has invited U.S. President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the NATO secretary general and several European leaders to a virtual meeting Wednesday ahead of the Trump-Putin summit later this week. The German chancellery said in a statement Monday that the talks would focus on 'the current situation in Ukraine with a view to the planned meeting between U.S. President Trump and Russian President Putin.' It said the talks will focus on 'further options for action to put pressure on Russia' as well as 'preparations for possible peace negotiations and related issues of territorial claims and security.' Europeans and Ukrainians so far are not invited to the summit Friday in Alaska. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP's earlier story follows below. BRUSSELS (AP) — Ukraine and its backers in Europe insist that the United States and Russia cannot decide on land swaps behind their backs at a summit this week, but the Europeans concede that Moscow is unlikely to give up control of Ukrainian land it holds. Ahead of the summit in Alaska on Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump suggested that a peace deal could include 'some swapping of territories,' but the Europeans see no sign that Russia will offer anything to swap. Europeans and Ukrainians so far are not invited to the summit. European Union foreign ministers are meeting on Monday following talks on Ukraine among U.S. and European security advisers over the weekend. They are concerned that President Vladimir Putin will try to claim a political victory by portraying Ukraine as inflexible. Concerns have mounted in Europe and Ukraine that Kyiv may be pressed to give up land or accept other curbs on its sovereignty. Ukraine and its European allies reject the notion that Putin should lay claim to any territory even before agreeing to a ceasefire. 'As we work towards a sustainable and just peace, international law is clear: All temporarily occupied territories belong to Ukraine,' EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said ahead of the ministerial meeting. 'A sustainable peace also means that aggression cannot be rewarded,' Kallas said. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said 'it must be obvious to Poland and our European partners — and I hope to all of NATO — that state borders cannot be changed by force.' Any land swaps or peace terms 'must be agreed upon with Ukraine's participation,' he said, according to Polish news agency PAP. On Sunday, Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Germany would not accept that territorial issues be discussed or decided by Russia and the United States 'over the heads' of Europeans or Ukrainians. Still, it's hard to ignore the reality on the ground. Russia in 2022 illegally annexed the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in Ukraine's east, and Kherson and Zaporizhzhia in the south, even though it doesn't fully control them. It also occupies the Crimean Peninsula, which it seized in 2014. On the 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line, Russia's bigger army has made slow but costly progress with its summer offensive. The relentless pounding of urban areas has killed more than 12,000 Ukrainian civilians, according to U.N. estimates. 'In the end, the issue of the fact that the Russians are controlling at this moment, factually, a part of Ukraine has to be on the table' in any peace talks after the Alaska summit, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said on CBS on Sunday. Rutte said Ukraine's Western backers 'can never accept that in a legal sense,' but he suggested that they might tacitly acknowledge Russian control. He compared it to the way that the U.S. hosted the diplomatic missions of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania from 1940 to 1991, 'acknowledging that the Soviet Union was controlling those territories, but never accepting (it) in a legal sense.' Giving up any territory, especially without a ceasefire agreement first, would be almost impossible for Zelenskyy to sell at home after thousands of troops have died defending their land. Ultimately, Putin is seen by some analysts as being not so much interested in land itself, but rather in a more 'Russia-friendly' Ukraine with a malleable government unlikely to try to join NATO, just as pro-Russian breakaway regions in Georgia have complicated that country's quest to become a member. Zelenskyy insists that a halt to fighting on the front line should be the starting point for negotiations, and the Europeans back him. They say that any future land swaps should be for Ukraine to decide and not be a precondition for a ceasefire. Claims on land could also be part of negotiations on the kind of security guarantees that Ukraine might receive to ensure another war does not break out. The Europeans believe Kyiv's best defense is strong armed forces to deter Russia from striking again. They insist there should be no restrictions on the size of Ukraine's army and the equipment, arms and ammunition it can possess or sell. Beyond that, they say Ukraine should not be constrained in its choice of joining the EU or being forced to become a neutral country. The Trump administration has already taken Ukraine's membership of NATO off the table for the foreseeable future.
Los Angeles Times
2 hours ago
- Los Angeles Times
Europe says a U.S.-Russia summit this week cannot decide on Ukraine land swaps
BRUSSELS — Ukraine and its backers in Europe insist that the United States and Russia cannot decide on land swaps behind their backs at a summit this week, but the Europeans concede that Moscow is unlikely to give up control of Ukrainian land it holds. Ahead of the summit in Alaska on Friday, President Trump suggested that a peace deal could include 'some swapping of territories,' but the Europeans see no sign that Russia will offer anything to swap. Europeans and Ukrainians so far are not invited to the summit. European Union foreign ministers are meeting on Monday following talks on Ukraine among U.S. and European security advisers over the weekend. They are concerned that President Vladimir Putin will try to claim a political victory by portraying Ukraine as inflexible. Concerns have mounted in Europe and Ukraine that Kyiv may be pressed to give up land or accept other curbs on its sovereignty. Ukraine and its European allies reject the notion that Putin should lay claim to any territory even before agreeing to a ceasefire. 'As we work towards a sustainable and just peace, international law is clear: All temporarily occupied territories belong to Ukraine,' EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said ahead of the ministerial meeting. 'A sustainable peace also means that aggression cannot be rewarded,' Kallas said. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said 'it must be obvious to Poland and our European partners — and I hope to all of NATO — that state borders cannot be changed by force.' Any land swaps or peace terms 'must be agreed upon with Ukraine's participation,' he said, according to Polish news agency PAP. On Sunday, Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Germany would not accept that territorial issues be discussed or decided by Russia and the United States 'over the heads' of Europeans or Ukrainians. Still, it's hard to ignore the reality on the ground. Russia in 2022 illegally annexed the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in Ukraine's east, and Kherson and Zaporizhzhia in the south, even though it doesn't fully control them. It also occupies the Crimean Peninsula, which it seized in 2014. On the 620-mile front line, Russia's bigger army has made slow but costly progress with its summer offensive. The relentless pounding of urban areas has killed more than 12,000 Ukrainian civilians, according to U.N. estimates. 'In the end, the issue of the fact that the Russians are controlling at this moment, factually, a part of Ukraine has to be on the table' in any peace talks after the Alaska summit, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said on CBS on Sunday. Rutte said Ukraine's Western backers 'can never accept that in a legal sense,' but he suggested that they might tacitly acknowledge Russian control. He compared it to the way that the U.S. hosted the diplomatic missions of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania from 1940 to 1991, 'acknowledging that the Soviet Union was controlling those territories, but never accepting (it) in a legal sense.' Giving up any territory, especially without a ceasefire agreement first, would be almost impossible for Zelensky to sell at home after thousands of troops have died defending their land. Ultimately, Putin is seen by some analysts as being not so much interested in land itself, but rather in a more 'Russia-friendly' Ukraine with a malleable government unlikely to try to join NATO, just as pro-Russian breakaway regions in Georgia have complicated that country's quest to become a member. Zelensky insists that a halt to fighting on the front line should be the starting point for negotiations, and the Europeans back him. They say that any future land swaps should be for Ukraine to decide and not be a precondition for a ceasefire. Claims on land could also be part of negotiations on the kind of security guarantees that Ukraine might receive to ensure another war does not break out. The Europeans believe Kyiv's best defense is strong armed forces to deter Russia from striking again. They insist there should be no restrictions on the size of Ukraine's army and the equipment, arms and ammunition it can possess or sell. Beyond that, they say Ukraine should not be constrained in its choice of joining the EU or being forced to become a neutral country. The Trump administration has already taken Ukraine's membership of NATO off the table for the foreseeable future. Cook writes for the Associated Press. AP writers Dasha Litvinova, and Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed.
