Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 20 of 20
Full-Text Articles in Law
Double Classification Of Non-Consensual State Interventions: Magic Protection Or Pandora’S Box?, Pauline Lesaffre
Double Classification Of Non-Consensual State Interventions: Magic Protection Or Pandora’S Box?, Pauline Lesaffre
International Law Studies
The classification under international humanitarian law of certain cross-border armed conflicts against an organized armed group remains controversial. More specifically, cross-border armed conflicts resulting from a non-consensual State intervention, such as the United States’ intervention in Syria (without Syrian consent) against the Islamic State, still divide legal scholarship regarding their appropriate classification. One theory argues for a single classification of non-international armed conflict between the intervening State and the organized armed group; another theory relies on a double classification of non-consensual State interventions, adding to the non-international armed conflict an international armed conflict between the intervening State and the territorial …
The Legal Fog Of An Illusion: Three Reflections On "Organization" And "Intensity" As Criteria For The Temporal Scope Of The Law Of Non-International Armed Conflict, Jann K. Kleffner
International Law Studies
The "organization" of the non-State armed group and the "intensity" of the violence between it and its opponent(s) have emerged as the two key criteria to determine the temporal scope of the law of non-international armed conflict. These criteria have served to lift the fog of law in some important respects. Yet, several aspects of the temporal scope of the law of non-international armed conflict remain unsettled. This article addresses three of them, namely the assertion that the factors for ascertaining organization and intensity that have evolved in the jurisprudence of international criminal courts and tribunals are indicative rather than …
Beyond Geneva: Detainee Review Processes In Non-International Armed Conflict—A U.S. Perspective, Ryan J. Vogel
Beyond Geneva: Detainee Review Processes In Non-International Armed Conflict—A U.S. Perspective, Ryan J. Vogel
International Law Studies
The need for detainee review in non-international armed conflict has never been more imperative. Yet, the law of armed conflict is almost completely silent on the subject. Although the law may not require States to conduct detainee review processes in non-international armed conflict, the spirit of the law encourages it, and States—particularly the United States—have begun to see utility in the development and implementation of such review processes. The object of this article is to identify an appropriate framework for detainee review, examine relevant U.S. state practice, and provide practical guidelines for implementing processes to review the status and threat …
The Updated Icrc Commentary On The Second Geneva Convention: Demystifying The Law Of Armed Conflict At Sea, Bruno Demeyere, Jean-Marie Henckaerts, Heleen Hiemstra, Ellen Nohle
The Updated Icrc Commentary On The Second Geneva Convention: Demystifying The Law Of Armed Conflict At Sea, Bruno Demeyere, Jean-Marie Henckaerts, Heleen Hiemstra, Ellen Nohle
International Law Studies
Since their publication in the 1950s and 1980s respectively, the Commentaries on the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocols of 1977 have become a major reference for the application and interpretation of those treaties. The International Committee of the Red Cross, together with a team of renowned experts, is currently updating these Commentaries in order to document developments and provide up-to-date interpretations of the treaty texts. Following a brief overview of the methodology and process of the update as well as a historical background to the Second Geneva Convention, this article addresses the scope of applicability of the …
Armed Conflict-Related Detention Of Particularly Vulnerable Persons: Challenges And Possibilities, Sandesh Sivakumaran
Armed Conflict-Related Detention Of Particularly Vulnerable Persons: Challenges And Possibilities, Sandesh Sivakumaran
International Law Studies
Persons detained for reasons related to an armed conflict are in a vulnerable position. Deprived of their liberty, they are at the mercy of their captors. Certain groups of detainees are particularly vulnerable. Additionally, the way in which non-international armed conflicts are fought can make it difficult for some parties to the conflict to comply with the rules benefiting particularly vulnerable detainees. This Article identifies groups of particularly vulnerable detainees and analyzes the general and special protections that are afforded to them under the conventional and customary international law of armed conflict. It then considers the realities of detention in …
Individual, Not Collective: Justifying The Resort To Force Against Members Of Non-State Armed Groups, Anthony Dworkin
Individual, Not Collective: Justifying The Resort To Force Against Members Of Non-State Armed Groups, Anthony Dworkin
International Law Studies
This article proposes an alternative to the conventional way of deciding when a State may target or detain members of an armed group. Instead of asking whether there is an armed conflict between the State and the group, this article argues that we should look at the State’s justification for the use of force against the group or its members. In a non-international context, this justification is rooted in human rights law. For this reason, the authorization for the resort to force operates on an individual basis, and the State is only justified in using force against individual members of …
The Updated Commentary On The First Geneva Convention – A New Tool For Generating Respect For International Humanitarian Law, Lindsey Cameron, Bruno Demeyere, Jean-Marie Henckaerts, Eve La Haye, Heike Niebergall-Lackner
The Updated Commentary On The First Geneva Convention – A New Tool For Generating Respect For International Humanitarian Law, Lindsey Cameron, Bruno Demeyere, Jean-Marie Henckaerts, Eve La Haye, Heike Niebergall-Lackner
International Law Studies
Since their publication in the 1950s and the 1980s respectively, the Commentaries on the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocols of 1977 have become a major reference for the application and interpretation of these treaties. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), together with a team of renowned experts, is currently updating these Commentaries in order to document developments and provide up-to-date interpretations. The work on the first updated Commentary, the Commentary on the First Geneva Convention relating to the protection of the wounded and sick in the armed forces, has already been finalized. This article provides …
A Human Rights Perspective To Global Battlefield Detention: Time To Reconsider Indefinite Detention, Yuval Shany
A Human Rights Perspective To Global Battlefield Detention: Time To Reconsider Indefinite Detention, Yuval Shany
International Law Studies
This article discusses one principal challenge to detention without trial of suspected international terrorists—the international human rights law (IHRL) norm requiring the introduction of an upper limit on the duration of security detention in order to render it not indefinite in length. Part One of this article describes the “hardline” position on security detention, adopted by the United States in the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 terror attacks (followed, with certain variations, by other countries, including the United Kingdom and the State of Israel), according to which international terrorism suspects can be deprived of their liberty without trial for the …
Protecting Cultural Property In Non-International Armed Conflicts: Syria And Iraq, Louise Arimatsu, Mohbuba Choudhury
Protecting Cultural Property In Non-International Armed Conflicts: Syria And Iraq, Louise Arimatsu, Mohbuba Choudhury
International Law Studies
The deliberate destruction by ISIS of religious and cultural property in both Syria and Iraq sparked widespread international condemnation and was described by UNESCO’s Director-General as constituting war crimes. Regrettably, the damage to and destruction of such property has become an all too common feature of the conflicts that have engulfed both States. The authors examine the legal obligations that apply to the parties in non-international armed conflict and the consequences of non-compliance. In light of the scale of the human suffering engendered by the conflicts, the authors first ask why international law protects such property in armed 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 …
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 …
Is There A Way Out Of The Non-International Armed Conflict Detention Dilemma?, Gabor Rona
Is There A Way Out Of The Non-International Armed Conflict Detention Dilemma?, Gabor Rona
International Law Studies
Detention in non-international armed conflicts (NIACs, or wars fought between States and non-State armed groups) is a time-honored military and humanitarian necessity. And yet, the principles of sovereignty, the texts of the law of armed conflict and international human rights law and the historical record leave little doubt: international law recognizes no inherent detention power in such wars. As long as NIACs were purely internal civil wars, there was little basis to question the exclusive role of domestic law in regulating detention of the enemy. With the advent of transnational NIACs, such as the war in Afghanistan involving multi-national forces …
Targeting And Detention In Non-International Armed Conflict: Serdar Mohammed And The Limits Of Human Rights Convergence, Aurel Sari, Sean Aughey
Targeting And Detention In Non-International Armed Conflict: Serdar Mohammed And The Limits Of Human Rights Convergence, Aurel Sari, Sean Aughey
International Law Studies
In recent years, the United Kingdom has seen a steady flow of legal challenges arising out of its involvement in the armed conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. Among these, the case of Serdar Mohammed, decided by the English High Court in May 2014, is of particular interest because of its wider implications. In essence, the High Court’s judgment in Mohammed questions the existence of a legal basis under the law of armed conflict for the conduct of status-based operations in non-international armed conflicts. This article demonstrates that the restrictive approach adopted by the High Court in Mohammed is mistaken as …
The Law Applicable To Naval Mine Warfare In A Non-International Armed Conflict, Rob Mclaughlin
The Law Applicable To Naval Mine Warfare In A Non-International Armed Conflict, Rob Mclaughlin
International Law Studies
There are very few instruments and very few cases, which describe how the law in relation to naval mine warfare applies within non-international armed conflict contexts. Additionally, since 1945, there has been relatively limited State practice. Working out what the law applicable to naval mine warfare in NIAC situations might look like today thus requires some recourse to the pre-World War II scheme designed to accommodate and characterize maritime activity by rebels, insurgents, and belligerents in conflict with their State. This article proposes for discussion a set of “rules” that attempt to incorporate and update elements of this customary scheme …
Charting The Legal Geography Of Non-International Armed Conflict, Michael N. Schmitt
Charting The Legal Geography Of Non-International Armed Conflict, Michael N. Schmitt
International Law Studies
This article examines the geographical reach of international humanitarian law (law of armed conflict), particularly during armed conflicts between States and non-State organized armed groups. The issue is operationally critical, since to the extent that IHL applies, practices which are lawful during armed conflicts, such as status-based targeting, may be employed. When IHL does not apply, human rights obligations shouldered by the State govern the conduct of its military operations. The article surveys the various approaches to the the legal geography of non-international armed conflict, arguing that an interpretation by which IHL is not geographically restricted is the most supportable.
Concluding Remarks On Non-International Armed Conflicts, Yoram Dinstein
Concluding Remarks On Non-International Armed Conflicts, Yoram Dinstein
International Law Studies
No abstract provided.
Rationales For Detention: Security Threats And Intelligence Value, Ryan Goodman
Rationales For Detention: Security Threats And Intelligence Value, Ryan Goodman
International Law Studies
No abstract provided.
Study On Customary International Humanitarian Law: A Contribution To The Understanding And Respect For The Rule Of Law In Armed Conflict, Jean-Marie Henckaerts
Study On Customary International Humanitarian Law: A Contribution To The Understanding And Respect For The Rule Of Law In Armed Conflict, Jean-Marie Henckaerts
International Law Studies
No abstract provided.
Military Commissions - Kangaroo Courts?, Charles H.B. Garraway
Military Commissions - Kangaroo Courts?, Charles H.B. Garraway
International Law Studies
No abstract provided.