crime against humanity

noun

1. a crime or series of crimes, such as genocide, directed against a large group because of religion, ethnicity, country of origin, or other reason unconnected with any individual's responsibility for having committed a criminal act.

Word History and Origins

Origin of crime against humanity¹

First recorded in 1940–45

Example Sentences

The commission concluded from its investigation that Israel has been guilty of the crime against humanity of extermination.

From Salon

They are not quite the same as war crimes, since a “crime against humanity can also be committed in peacetime.”

From Salon

Just as a crime against humanity isn’t necessarily a war crime, extermination, Sidoti explained, is not the same thing as genocide.

From Salon

Israeli security forces have deliberately killed, wounded, arrested, detained, mistreated and tortured medical personnel and targeted medical vehicles, constituting the war crimes of wilful killing and mistreatment and the crime against humanity of extermination.

From Salon

The commission said Israeli attacks on Gaza’s healthcare facilities and Israel’s treatment of Palestinian detainees amounted to war crimes, as well as the crime against humanity of “extermination”.

From BBC