“In Focus” Syllabus Supplements: The Iran–Israel–United States Armed Conflict (2025–2026)

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Table of Contents

A. Jus Ad Bellum (International Law Governing the Resort to Military Force)

B. International Humanitarian Law/Law of Armed Conflict and Law of State Responsibility

C. Naval Warfare and the Strait of Hormuz

D. Domestic War Powers and Congressional Oversight

E. Intelligence, Strategy, National Security Policy, and Regional Implications

A. Jus Ad Bellum (International Law Governing the Resort to Military Force)

1. Tess Bridgeman and Oona Hathaway, At the 60-Day Mark, the Iran War is Triply Illegal (May 2026)
2. Brian Finucane, On the State Department Memorandum “Operation Epic Fury and International Law” (April 2026)
3. Tom Dannenbaum, Rebecca Hamilton, Adil Ahmad Haque, Oona A. Hathaway, and Gabor Rona, Over 100 International Law Experts Warn: U.S. Strikes on Iran Violate UN Charter and May Be War Crimes (April 2026)
4. Geoffrey S. Corn, Dick Jackson, Chris Jenks, and Michael W. Meier, In Response to the Letter by International Law Experts (April 2026)
5. Adil Ahmad Haque, Aggression by the United States and Israel, Misdirected Self-Defense by Iran, and Collective Self-Defense of Gulf States (March 2026)
6. Eliav Lieblich, Double Preemption, Imminence, and the U.S. Attack Against Iran (March 2026)
7. Gabor Rona, Fighting an Illegal War and Fighting a War Illegally: the Link between Regime Change Operations and International Humanitarian Law Violations (March 2026)
8. Adil Ahmad Haque, The Illegality of Israel’s Military Campaign in Lebanon (March 2026)
9. Brian Finucane, An Unserious Justification for an Unnecessary War: Assessing the U.S. “Article 51” Letter to U.N. on Iran War (March 2026)
10. Michael Schmitt, Tess Bridgeman and Ryan Goodman, Expert Q&A: Are U.S. Threats or Use of Force Against Iran Lawful? (February 2026)
11. Rebecca Hamilton, International Reactions to Military Strikes on Iran: A Tipping Point for the UN Charter? (February 2026)
12. Adil Haque, Indefensible: Israel’s Unlawful Attack on Iran (June 2025)
13. Brian Finucane, Assessing the U.S. Article 51 Letter for the Attack on Iran: Legal Lipstick on the Use of Force Pig (July 2025)
14. Amichai Cohen and Yuval Shany, A New War or a New Stage in Ongoing War – Observations on June 13 Israeli Attack against Iran (June 2025)

B. International Humanitarian Law/Law of Armed Conflict and Law of State Responsibility

1. Michael Schmitt, Tess Bridgeman and Ryan Goodman, On Ambassador Waltz’s Defense of Potential Law of War Violations in the Iran Conflict (April 2026)
2. Michael W. Meier, “Precision Strike Missiles” (PrSMs) in Iran War: The U.S. Obligation to Conduct a Legal Review of New Weapons (April 2026)
3. Margaret Donovan and Rachel VanLandingham, Lt Col, USAF (Ret.), When War Crimes Rhetoric Becomes Battlefield Reality: The Slippery Slope to Total War on Iran (April 2026)
4. Luca Trenta and Arturo Jimenez-Bacardi, Khamenei’s Killing and the Perilous Death of the Assassination Ban (April 2026)
5. Michael Schmitt, Tess Bridgeman and Ryan Goodman, Expert Q&A: A Targeting Primer on Iran War (March 2026)
6. Marko Milanovic and Michael Schmitt, Was Targeting Ayatollah Khamenei and Other Iranian Leaders Lawful? What Precedents Does it Set? (March 2026)
7. Joseph N. Orenstein, When Intelligence Fails: A Legal Targeting Analysis of the Minab School Strike (March 2026)
8. Daniel Maurer, Hypothetical Legal Advice to SecDef Hegseth on “No Quarter” Statement (from Office of General Counsel) (March 2026)
9. Klaudia Klonowska and Michael Schmitt, Iranian Attacks on the Amazon Data Centers: A Legal Analysis (March 2026)
10. Annie Shiel and Priyanka Motaparthy, In the U.S. Strike on an Iranian School, What a Serious Military Investigation Should Look Like (March 2026)

C. Naval Warfare and the Strait of Hormuz

1. Daphné Richemond-Barak and Jacob Stoil, Taking a Toll: How Allowing Iran to Charge for Transit in the Strait of Hormuz Could Undermine U.S. Strategy in the Pacific and Beyond (May 2026)
2. Mark Nevitt, Five “Blockades” and One Legal Problem: Naval Enforcement in the U.S.–Iran Conflict (May 2026)
3. Mark Nevitt, Mined and Blockaded: Iran’s Unlawful Mining and the U.S. Port Blockade (April 2026)
4. Michael Schmitt and Elizabeth Hutton, Sinking Iran’s Frigate IRIS Dena and the Law of Naval Warfare (March 2026)
5. Michael Schmitt and Rob McLaughlin, Expert Q&A on Key Law of Naval Warfare Issues in the Conflict with Iran (March 2026)
6. Mark Nevitt, Legal and Operational Issues in the Strait of Hormuz: Transit Passage Under Fire (March 2026)

D. Domestic War Powers and Congressional Oversight

1. Brian Finucane and Tess Bridgeman, How Congress Can End Trump’s Iran War and Prevent the Next One (July 2026)
2. Tess Bridgeman, Time to Repeal INARA and Move Forward with the Iran MoU (June 2026)
3. Michael J. Glennon, The Court Gutted Congress’s War Power. It’s Time to Give It Back. (March 2026)
4. Brian Finucane, Iran, War Powers, and the Power of the Purse: Leverage or Legalization (March 2026)
5. Tess Bridgeman, Kate Brannen, and Ryan Goodman, Top Questions the Trump Administration Needs to Answer on War with Iran (March 2026)
6. Brian Egan and Tess Bridgeman, Top Experts’ Backgrounder: Military Action Against Iran and US Domestic Law (February 2026)
7. Michael J. Glennon, The U.S. Attack on Iran Was Unconstitutional (July 2025)

E. Intelligence, Strategy, National Security Policy, and Regional Implications

1. Jason Abbott, What A War Game Already Told Us About Iran (May 2026)
2. Marc Polymeropoulos and Jeremy Hurewitz, How Good is Our Intelligence on Iran? (April 2026)
3. Brianna Rosen, Tess Bridgeman, and Nima Gerami, The Day After U.S. Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Program: A Policy and Legal Assessment (June 2025)