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International Humanitarian Law Commons™
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Articles 1 - 30 of 106
Full-Text Articles in International Humanitarian Law
Legal Status Of Drones Under Loac And International Law, Vivek Sehrawat
Legal Status Of Drones Under Loac And International Law, Vivek Sehrawat
Penn State Journal of Law & International Affairs
No abstract provided.
The Limits Of Inviolability: The Parameters For Protection Of United Nations Facilities During Armed Conflict, Laurie R. Blank
The Limits Of Inviolability: The Parameters For Protection Of United Nations Facilities During Armed Conflict, Laurie R. Blank
International Law Studies
This article examines the international legal protections for United Nations humanitarian assistance and other civilian facilities during armed conflict, including under general international law, setting forth the immunities of the United Nations, and the law of armed conflict (LOAC), the relevant legal framework during wartime. Recent conflicts highlight three primary issues: (1) collateral damage to UN facilities as a consequence of strikes on military objectives nearby and military operations in the immediate vicinity; (2) the misuse of UN facilities for military purposes; and (3) direct attacks on fighters, weapons or other equipment that cause damage to such facilities. To identify …
Chemical Weapons And Other Atrocities: Contrasting Responses To The Syrian Crisis, Tim Mccormack
Chemical Weapons And Other Atrocities: Contrasting Responses To The Syrian Crisis, Tim Mccormack
International Law Studies
Why has the use of chemical weapons in Syria engendered such a substantive multilateral response in stark contrast to almost every other egregious international law violation perpetrated against the civilian population? Various theories have been offered but the explanation has little to do with humanitarian concerns for Syrian victims and is more readily explicable by unusual (in the Syrian context) alignment of U.S. and Russian national interests. Bashar al-Assad was convinced to accede to the Chemical Weapons Convention, to surrender his stockpiles of chemical weapons and to co-operate with international investigators deployed under UN Security Council auspices amid a cacophony …
Arbitrary Withholding Of Consent To Humanitarian Relief Operations In Armed Conflict, Dapo Akande, Emanuela-Chiara Gillard
Arbitrary Withholding Of Consent To Humanitarian Relief Operations In Armed Conflict, Dapo Akande, Emanuela-Chiara Gillard
International Law Studies
This article examines the requirement under international humanitarian law (IHL) that consent to humanitarian relief operations must not be arbitrarily withheld. It begins with a brief outline of the rules of IHL regulating humanitarian assistance in armed conflict. The article then considers the origin of the rule prohibiting arbitrary withholding of consent to humanitarian relief operations before proceeding to set out the circumstances when consent will be considered to have been withheld arbitrarily under international law. It proposes three tests for arbitrariness in this context, and also examines how international human rights regulates humanitarian assistance in armed conflict.
Soldier 2.0: Military Human Enhancement And International Law, Heather A. Harrison Dinniss, Jann K. Kleffner
Soldier 2.0: Military Human Enhancement And International Law, Heather A. Harrison Dinniss, Jann K. Kleffner
International Law Studies
Advances in technologies that could endow humans with physical or mental abilities that go beyond the statistically normal level of functioning are occurring at an incredible pace. The use of these human enhancement technologies by the military, for instance in the spheres of biotechnology, cybernetics and prosthetics, raise a number of questions under the international legal frameworks governing military technology, namely the law of armed conflict and human rights law. The article examines these frameworks with a focus on weapons law, the law pertaining to the detention of and by “enhanced individuals,” the human rights of those individuals and their …
Partners And Legal Pitfalls, Brian Finucane
Partners And Legal Pitfalls, Brian Finucane
International Law Studies
Partnered military operations are an increasingly prominent feature of armed conflict and one which presents a distinct set of legal challenges to States assisting partners. This is particularly true of the war in Syria which is characterized both by States working with and through other States and non-State actors and by the widespread violation of the law of armed conflict (LOAC) by many of the parties. This article considers the legal implications of LOAC violations by a party to the conflict for the State or States providing it assistance and identifies risk mitigation measures that assisting States can adopt.
Classifying The Conflict In Syria, Terry D. Gill
Classifying The Conflict In Syria, Terry D. Gill
International Law Studies
This article examines the classification of the current armed conflict in Syria under international humanitarian law. The article first sets out the factual background identifying the principal parties and their alignments and motivations. It then proceeds to examine the question of classification of conflict under international humanitarian law and discusses the contentious issue of the effect of lack of consent by the government of a State in relation to foreign intervention in an ongoing non-international armed conflict when such intervention is directed against one or more armed groups operating from within that State’s territory. It then proceeds to apply these …
Syria: Can International Law Cope? Workshop Report, Christopher M. Ford
Syria: Can International Law Cope? Workshop Report, Christopher M. Ford
International Law Studies
The Stockton Center for the Study of International Law at the U.S. Naval War College and the Center for the Rule of Law at the U.S. Military Academy convened a three-day workshop in November 2015. The workshop sought to examine the question posed by its title: Can International Law Cope with the Situation in Syria? It is a question that has ramifications for the viability of international law well beyond the confines of events in Syria. This report surveys the key issues that were raised during the workshop and serves as an introduction to the articles that follow in this …
Mapping War Crimes In Syria, Beth Van Schaak
Mapping War Crimes In Syria, Beth Van Schaak
International Law Studies
This article maps the range of war crimes being committed in Syria with reference to the applicable treaty and customary international law and prospects for prosecution. It begins by presenting the international legal framework employed to determine when an armed conflict began in Syria, how this conflict is classified under international law and which multilateral treaties and customary rules are operative. This framework underlies the determination of which war crimes can be prosecuted, which tribunals might have jurisdiction and which perpetrators may be made subject to indictment. The article next focuses on some open legal and factual issues around certain …
Foreign Terrorist Fighters In Syria: Challenges Of The “Sending” State, Marten Zwanenburg
Foreign Terrorist Fighters In Syria: Challenges Of The “Sending” State, Marten Zwanenburg
International Law Studies
This article discusses domestic measures taken by the Netherlands to combat the phenomenon of foreign terrorist fighters, predominantly in the context of the Syrian conflict. It discusses criminal prosecution, asset freezes, deprivation of nationality and revocation of travel documents. The author concludes that in each of these fields, there is a close relationship between international law and national law.
The Dod Law Of War Manual And Its Critics: Some Observations, Charles J. Dunlap Jr.
The Dod Law Of War Manual And Its Critics: Some Observations, Charles J. Dunlap Jr.
International Law Studies
The U.S. Department of Defense’s (DoD) new Law of War Manual has generated serious debate about its treatment of a variety of issues including human shields, the status of journalists, cyber operations, the precautions to be taken prior to attacks and even the role of honor in war. Although this article does not purport to be a comprehensive response to every critique of the Manual and, indeed, cites opportunities for its improvement, it nevertheless concludes that on balance the Manual provides an excellent, comprehensive and much-needed statement of DoD’s view of the lex lata of the law of war.
The Combatant’S Stance: Autonomous Weapons On The Battlefield, Jens David Ohlin
The Combatant’S Stance: Autonomous Weapons On The Battlefield, Jens David Ohlin
International Law Studies
Do Autonomous Weapon Systems (AWS) qualify as moral or rational agents? This paper argues that combatants on the battlefield are required by the demands of behavior interpretation to approach a sophisticated AWS with the “Combatant’s Stance”—the ascription of mental states required to understand the system’s strategic behavior on the battlefield. However, the fact that an AWS must be engaged with the combatant’s stance does not entail that other persons are relieved of criminal or moral responsibility for war crimes committed by autonomous weapons. This article argues that military commanders can and should be held responsible for perpetrating war crimes through …
Emerging Technologies And Loac Signaling, Eric Talbot Jensen
Emerging Technologies And Loac Signaling, Eric Talbot Jensen
International Law Studies
As States seek to weaponize new technologies such as robotics, cyber tools and nanotechnology, the current law of armed conflict (LOAC) that guides the employment of existing weapons will signal rules and principles that should guide national decisions on what new technologies to weaponize and how to do so in a way that ensures compliance with battlefield regulation. LOAC has served this "signaling" function historically with respect to innovative weapon systems such as balloons, submarines, airplanes, and nuclear weapons, and will continue to do so as nations look forward to potentially weaponizing emerging technologies.
Nanotechnology And The Future Of The Law Of Weaponry, Hitoshi Nasu
Nanotechnology And The Future Of The Law Of Weaponry, Hitoshi Nasu
International Law Studies
Novel applications of nanotechnology for military purposes are expected to have a transformative impact on the way in which wars can be fought in the future battlespace, with the potential to drive changes to the law of weaponry. This article considers the potential of military applications of nanotechnology to bring changes to the existing principles and rules of weapons law. It specifically focuses on the likelihood that more sophisticated, miniaturized and tailored weapons and weapon systems will be produced that enable mechanical precision of targeting with no or few civilian casualties.
Applying The European Convention On Human Rights To The Use Of Physical Force: Al-Saadoon, David S. Goddard
Applying The European Convention On Human Rights To The Use Of Physical Force: Al-Saadoon, David S. Goddard
International Law Studies
In Al-Saadoon and Others v. Secretary of State for Defence, the High Court of Justice of England and Wales has found that the United Kingdom’s obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) can be activated extraterritorially simply through the use by State agents of physical force against an individual. This article explains the judgment and places it in the context of the development of the law both in the United Kingdom and at the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). While it remains subject to appeal domestically and its approach may not be followed by the ECtHR, …
The Combatant Status Of The “Little Green Men” And Other Participants In The Ukraine Conflict, Shane R. Reeves, David Wallace
The Combatant Status Of The “Little Green Men” And Other Participants In The Ukraine Conflict, Shane R. Reeves, David Wallace
International Law Studies
As an occupation and a civil war are simultaneously taking place in Ukraine a particularly vexing international law question is presented: what is the legal status of those involved in the hostilities? This article is designed to answer that question and to identify the associated rights, duties and responsibilities of the participants in the conflict.
Conflict Classification In Ukraine: The Return Of The “Proxy War”?, Robert Heinsch
Conflict Classification In Ukraine: The Return Of The “Proxy War”?, Robert Heinsch
International Law Studies
The article examines the exact conditions for classifying an armed conflict under international humanitarian law against the backdrop of the crisis in Ukraine, taking into account the difficult factual situation on the ground and the involvement of the different parties to the conflict. Apart from dealing with the requirements of an international or a non-international armed conflict, it looks again into the specific circumstances for the “internationalization” of an internal armed conflict. In doing so, the author revisits the various approaches found in the jurisprudence of the International Court of Justice in its 1986 Nicaragua and 2007 Genocide judgments, as …
Regulating Hostilities In Non-International Armed Conflicts: Thoughts On Bridging The Divide Between The Tadić Aspiration And Conflict Realities, Geoffrey S. Corn
Regulating Hostilities In Non-International Armed Conflicts: Thoughts On Bridging The Divide Between The Tadić Aspiration And Conflict Realities, Geoffrey S. Corn
International Law Studies
International Humanitarian Law (IHL) evolved to strike a rational balance between the necessity of using combat power to defeat enemy opponents, and the humanitarian interest of mitigating the human suffering resulting from armed conflict. Ironically, however, the “type” of conflict most comprehensively regulated by this law—international or inter-State (IACs)—is not the “type” of armed conflict that has been most notable for producing humanitarian suffering since the end of World War II. Instead, non-international armed conflicts (NIACs)—conflicts between States and organized non-State belligerent groups, or even between multiple non-State belligerent groups—have been notorious for their brutality, indifference towards humanitarian restraint, and …
State Opinio Juris And International Humanitarian Law Pluralism, Michael N. Schmitt, Sean Watts
State Opinio Juris And International Humanitarian Law Pluralism, Michael N. Schmitt, Sean Watts
International Law Studies
International humanitarian law has developed through a pluralistic process. Its history reveals a pattern of rough proportionality between State opinio juris and non-State expressions of law. These diverse sources have maintained a respectable yet realistic balance between humanity and military necessity. However, current IHL dialogue presents a stark contrast to the vibrant and pluralistic exchanges of the past. The substantive input of non-State actors such as non-governmental organizations, tribunals, and scholars far outpaces the work of States. Parity of input, especially in quantitative terms, is surely too much to demand and surely not necessary given the special status of State …
Authorization Versus Regulation Of Detention In Non-International Armed Conflicts, Ryan Goodman
Authorization Versus Regulation Of Detention In Non-International Armed Conflicts, Ryan Goodman
International Law Studies
What does the law of armed conflict say about detention in non-international armed conflict? Is the law “utterly silent,” as some contend, with respect to the grounds for detention—regulating who may be confined and for what status or behavior? And do the in bello rules provide a source of affirmative authority that empowers belligerents to engage in detention? How those questions are resolved and, in particular, the basis for reaching the conclusions may have unintended consequences for the regulation of warfare. This article contends that the laws of war regulate the grounds for detention but do not authorize detention in …
Cyber War And International Law: Concluding Remarks At The 2012 Naval War College International Law Conference, Yoram Dinstein
Cyber War And International Law: Concluding Remarks At The 2012 Naval War College International Law Conference, Yoram Dinstein
International Law Studies
No abstract provided.
The Role Of Counterterrorism Law In Shaping Ad Bellum Norms For Cyber Warfare, William Banks
The Role Of Counterterrorism Law In Shaping Ad Bellum Norms For Cyber Warfare, William Banks
International Law Studies
No abstract provided.
Networks In Non-International Armed Conflicts: Crossing Borders And Defining "Organized Armed Groups", Peter Margulies
Networks In Non-International Armed Conflicts: Crossing Borders And Defining "Organized Armed Groups", Peter Margulies
International Law Studies
No abstract provided.
International Law And Cyber Threats From Non-State Actors, Laurie R. Blank
International Law And Cyber Threats From Non-State Actors, Laurie R. Blank
International Law Studies
No abstract provided.
Lawful Targets In Cyber Operations: Does The Principle Of Distinction Apply?, Noam Lubell
Lawful Targets In Cyber Operations: Does The Principle Of Distinction Apply?, Noam Lubell
International Law Studies
No abstract provided.
Global Armed Conflict? The Threshold Of Extraterritorial Non-International Armed Conflict, Sasha Radin
Global Armed Conflict? The Threshold Of Extraterritorial Non-International Armed Conflict, Sasha Radin
International Law Studies
No abstract provided.
Geography Of Armed Conflict: Why It Is A Mistake To Fish For The Red Herring, Geoffrey S. Corn
Geography Of Armed Conflict: Why It Is A Mistake To Fish For The Red Herring, Geoffrey S. Corn
International Law Studies
No abstract provided.
Belligerent Targeting And The Invalidity Of A Least Harmful Means Rule, Geoffrey S. Corn, Laurie R. Blank, Chris Jenks, Eric Talbot Jensen
Belligerent Targeting And The Invalidity Of A Least Harmful Means Rule, Geoffrey S. Corn, Laurie R. Blank, Chris Jenks, Eric Talbot Jensen
International Law Studies
No abstract provided.
An Australian Perspective On Non-International Armed Conflict: Afghanistan And East Timor, Rob Mclaughlin
An Australian Perspective On Non-International Armed Conflict: Afghanistan And East Timor, Rob Mclaughlin
International Law Studies
No abstract provided.
Use Of Unmanned Systems To Combat Terrorism, Raul A. "Pete" Pedrozo
Use Of Unmanned Systems To Combat Terrorism, Raul A. "Pete" Pedrozo
International Law Studies
No abstract provided.