Alex Moorehead

Guest Author

Alex Moorehead is Lecturer-in-Law at Columbia Law School and the Director of the Counterterrorism, Armed Conflict and Human Rights Project at Columbia Law School’s Human Rights Institute. Alex has extensive legal and research experience working on the inter-operability of international human rights law and international humanitarian law in situations of armed conflict. He also has specific expertise on counterterrorism, national security and human rights.

Prior to joining the Institute, Moorehead served in a number of roles as a Human Rights Officer with the United Nations. From 2015-16, he was based in Geneva, Switzerland, providing advice to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on policy and legal issues related to counter-terrorism, security, armed conflict and human rights across the globe. From 2013-15 he was based in Ramallah, occupied Palestinian territory, where he advised OHCHR and other UN entities on human rights and other legal issues and carried out monitoring of violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law.

As a Human Rights Officer based in Kandahar with the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan from 2011-12, Moorehead carried out research and monitoring into civilian casualties, the use of force, torture in detention, and violence against women. After leaving Afghanistan, Moorehead joined Amnesty International as the organisation’s legal advisor focused on security, counterterrorism and human rights. Moorehead has also worked with Human Rights Watch and other non-governmental organizations in Egypt, Uganda and the USA, and qualified as a solicitor with the law firm Reed Smith in the UK in 2007.

Moorehead holds a BA in History from the University of Bristol and an LLM in International Human Rights and Humanitarian Law from the University of Essex.

Articles by this author:

Transparency on Civilian Harm in Somalia Matters – Not Just to Americans

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Apr 9th, 2019

Costs of War Can’t Be Assessed Without Official Civilian Casualty Estimates

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Apr 3rd, 2019

Countries’ Reactions to Bolton’s Attack on the ICC

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Sep 18th, 2018

New UN Report Says All Parties to Yemen Conflict May be Responsible for War Crimes

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Sep 7th, 2018

Niger Facing Pressure to Ensure U.S. and French Drone Strikes Comply with Human Rights Law

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Sep 6th, 2018

The Department of Defense’s Report on Civilian Casualties: A Step Forward in Transparency?

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Jun 13th, 2018

Academics and NGOs Call on Celebrities and Business Leaders to Condemn Saudi Abuses in Yemen

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May 24th, 2018

What Questions Should Congress Be Asking DoD About Civilian Casualties?

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May 1st, 2018

Brazil’s Robust Defense of the Legal Prohibition on the Use of Force and Self Defense

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Apr 20th, 2018

New Series: Perspectives from Impacted Countries

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Mar 19th, 2018

Six Reasons Why the US and Other States Should Support an Independent, International Inquiry on Yemen

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Sep 26th, 2017

Global Group of Civil Society Organizations Raise Concerns about U.S.-led Drone Export Initiative

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Sep 14th, 2017

U.S. Secrecy and Transparency in the Use of Lethal Force

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Jun 13th, 2017

UAE, a Key US Partner in Yemen, Implicated in Detainee Abuse

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May 15th, 2017

U.N. Panel of Experts Finds “Widespread Violations” of International Law in Yemen

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Feb 28th, 2017

‘Forever War’ Symposium Offers Timely Perspective on Trump’s Policies

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Feb 13th, 2017

Yemen’s consent for U.S. counterterrorism operations: Questions for the Trump Administration

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Feb 9th, 2017

Rare U.S. Military Acknowledgment of Civilian Casualties in Yemen—Concerns about transparency persist

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Feb 2nd, 2017

Trump’s First Drone Strikes: How to Measure His Approach to Transparency and Accountability

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Jan 24th, 2017

What’s Actually New in the New Drone Strike & Military Force Disclosures?

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Dec 6th, 2016

How Should Governments Evaluate the Actions of States They Assist?

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Nov 17th, 2016

The Saudi Weapons Block Wouldn’t be the First: Some Past Examples of Halts on US Arms Transfers

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Sep 21st, 2016