Law Commons^™

One of the fundamental principles of International Humanitarian Law, if not the fundamental principle, is the need to distinguish combatants from civilians and civilian objects in the course of belligerency. One of the most important civilian objects is the environment in which civilians live. However the importance of the environment has not been a focus of International Humanitarian Law until recent years. Rules of International Humanitarian Law now account for environmental matters generally but are not adequate to deal with particular "vulnerable" environments, such as the Arctic and the Amazon. Changes in these environments have the potential for world-wide repercussions …