International court says will not investigate 2010 sinking of S Korean warship

AMSTERDAM - The International Criminal Court said on Monday that it would not open an investigation into the sinking of the South Korean warship Cheonan in 2010 in which 46 sailors died, because the attack was directed at a lawful military target.

In a statement, prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said the court would also not open an investigation into the shelling, also by North Korean forces, of Yeonpyeong Island later the same year.

The court had been conducting a preliminary examination into both events to determine if a full investigation was warranted.

"Even though the shelling resulted, regrettably, in civilian casualties, the information available does not provide a reasonable basis to believe that the attack was intentionally directed against civilian objects," the prosecutor said.