Escalating attacks between the United States, Israel and Iran have intensified concerns that long-standing norms governing international conflict are being eroded. President Donald Trump has threatened overwhelming strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure, including gas fields and power plants, if Tehran continues retaliatory actions or disrupts shipping routes. Iran has responded with threats and actions targeting energy facilities in the Gulf, raising fears of broader regional instability.

Luis Moreno Ocampo, the founding chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, said the conflict represents a serious breach of the global rules-based order established to limit war and protect civilians. He argued that military action not taken in self-defence or approved by the United Nations Security Council constitutes a crime of aggression under international law.

Moreno Ocampo also warned that attacks on energy infrastructure by any side do not qualify as legitimate military targets, comparing such actions to strikes on power facilities in Ukraine that led to indictments. He cautioned that the shift from established international rules to decisions driven by individual leaders threatens global stability and undermines legal protections designed to prevent war.