Armed Conflict • International Law
Law of Armed Conflict/IHL
1,740 Articles
Ahead of the State of the Union: Analysis from Diplomats, Top Experts
The State of the Union Address tomorrow comes at a precarious moment for the U.S. and the world.

Russia’s “Occupation by Proxy” of Eastern Ukraine – Implications Under the Geneva Conventions
All state parties to the Geneva Conventions now have a role to play via enforcing grave breaches regime.

What I Told Congress about U.S. Lethal Strikes
Congress should take steps to end America’s war-based approach to counterterrorism policy.

Clear Error in the Defense Department’s Law of War Manual: On Presumptions of Civilian Status
This article is the first in a new project at Just Security that assesses the U.S. Department of Defense’s Law of War Manual with a goal of providing constructive opportunities…

A Big Step Forward or Running in Place?: The Pentagon’s New Policy on Civilian Casualties
New Pentagon effort to respond to civilian harm is encouraging, but DOD needs to demonstrate leadership, scope the problem correctly, and address the growing credibility gap to…

La France n’est pas un havre de paix pour les auteurs de violations des droits de l’homme, malgré l’avis de la Haute Cour
This article is also available in English here. Traduction fournie par l’auteur Un avis retentissant rendu par la plus haute juridiction française a semé le doute sur…

The Al-Qurayshi Operation and Minimization of Civilian Casualties
US officials’ emphasis on minimization of civilian casualties in an operation against such a high value target deserves special attention.

Biden Team Gets It Right on Inadmissibility of Torture Evidence in Al-Nashiri Case
In a much anticipated brief, the government categorically rejected the use of statements obtained through torture in military commissions and promised not to admit any statements…

A Rare Public Wake-Up Call from the ICRC on Guantanamo Transfers
An exceedingly rare public statement by the ICRC calls on the Biden administration to get serious about Guantanamo transfers.

A German Sentence of Life Imprisonment for Crimes Against Humanity – A Small Measure of Justice for Syria
Unpacking a landmark conviction for war crimes in Syria.

The Russian ASAT Test Caps a Bad Year for the Due Regard Principle in Space
It's time for States to take positions on their treaty obligation to act with "due regard" to the interests of others in outer space.

Civilian Casualties in U.S. Air Wars: A Wake-up Call for Canada and its Future Use of Armed Drones?
Last month’s New York Times report that the American air wars in Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan have been plagued by flawed intelligence, poor targeting, and thousands of civilian…