Prosecutor: ICC ruling on Kenya is "critically important"

The decision of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to try four Kenyans for crimes against humanity in connection with the deadly 2008 post-election violence has been described as "critically important."

In a statement released on Tuesday, ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo said the ruling is significant for several reasons, including that it defined what crimes against humanity are.

Mr. Ocampo said the ICC ruling "is establishing individual responsibility for the post-electoral violence but also for a peaceful Kenya."

On Monday the court ruled that four men—including current presidential hopefuls Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto—should face trial for the violence which resulted in more than 1,500 deaths and thousands displaced.