A/HRC/28/28 dignity. Serious violations of international humanitarian law may amount to war crimes, engaging the individual criminal responsibility of those responsible. 43. As I highlighted in my briefing to the Security Council on 18 November 2014, evidence exists indicating that members of ISIL are likely responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity, subject to determination by a competent court of law. It is also possible that, particularly in respect of the Yazidis, some of the offences constitutive of the crime of genocide, as defined in the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, have been perpetrated by individuals within the ISIL leadership. Deliberate and calculated abuses, violations and crimes committed by ISIL have been documented extensively by the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic and by the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq and OHCHR.26 These include murder and other inhumane acts, enslavement, rape, sexual slavery and other forms of sexual violence, forcible displacement, enforced disappearance and torture committed as part of a widespread and systematic attack against the civilian population in a number of governorates. 44. Accountability for all gross violations of international human rights law and serious violations of international humanitarian law through effective investigation and prosecution of those responsible is essential to ensure justice, to provide redress to victims and to prevent further violations. The responsibility for accountability falls primarily on States, which are obliged to ensure investigations and, where the evidence warrants, prosecutions of such violations, meeting minimum international standards of justice. Domestic courts in Iraq and the Syrian Arab Republic have jurisdiction over crimes committed by nationals or foreign fighters in those territories and should, whenever possible, exercise such jurisdiction. The countries of nationality of these foreign fighters should also effectively investigate and prosecute those responsible whenever they can do so. 45. In certain circumstances, where a State is unwilling or unable to investigate or prosecute those responsible for serious violations of international human rights and international humanitarian law constitutive of international crimes, the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court may be triggered. I have made numerous calls for a referral of the situation in the Syrian Arab Republic to the Court, following findings by the Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic and OHCHR that international crimes have been committed on an increasingly large scale. I also have called upon Iraq to consider accession to the Rome Statute of the Court and, as an immediate step, to accept the exercise of the Court’s jurisdiction with respect to the current situation. I would also hope that the Court can be enabled to exercise its jurisdiction over those foreign fighters implicated in international crimes who are nationals of States party to the court. Every measure should be taken to ensure that individuals responsible for serious violations of international law are held to account. 3. Human rights-compliant responses 46. While Security Council resolution 2178 (2014) includes important provisions for ensuring compliance with international human rights law, concerns have been raised over the broad nature of certain provisions and the potential this creates for the implementation of measures at the national level that may result in violations of human rights. The significant shortcomings in the compliance of many States with their obligations under international human rights law in the context of counter-terrorism are disturbing and provided a backdrop to these concerns. For example, the reference made by the Council in 26 14 “Rule of Terror” (see footnote 24) and UNAMI/OHCHR, Report on the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict in Iraq: 6 July – 10 September 2014.