...Although the United States is not a state party to Rome Statute, the treaty that created the court, American citizens can be subject to its jurisdiction if the court is investigating crimes in countries that have joined. Those countries include Afghanistan, Lithuania, Poland and Romania.

Katherine Gallagher, a senior staff attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights, a New York-based legal advocacy group, said the crimes had been documented for the prosecutors to move quickly. “In the case of U.S. torture, who bears responsibility has been well-documented,” said Ms. Gallagher,who attended the overruling at The Hague on Thursday. ...

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