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Armed Conflict

Just Security’s expert authors provide analysis on the legal, policy, and strategic dimensions of armed conflict, including the Russia-Ukraine war, the Israel-Hamas war, counterterrorism operations, conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa, and other armed conflicts across the globe, with a focus on international humanitarian law, war crimes and accountability, mitigating and remedying civilian harm, and the humanitarian impacts of warfare.

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3,316 Articles
Lt. Gen. John Kimmons, U.S. Army, holds up a copy of the Army Field Manual, FM 2-22.3, Human Intelligence Collector Operations as he briefs reporters on the details of the manual in the Pentagon on Sept. 6, 2006.

The Méndez Principles: The Need to Update the Army Field Manual on Interrogation for the 21st Century

Defense Secretary Austin should convene an expert panel to ensure that methods used are informed by current science.
Jun. 11, 2021 and
A Rohingya refugee family rests in a temporary shelter days after a fire burnt their home at a refugee camp in Ukhia, in the southeastern Cox's Bazar district on March 25, 2021.

Beyond the Coup in Myanmar: The Views of Rohingya Refugees in Bangladesh

The coup seemed to dash Rohingya refugee hopes of return to Myanmar. But some feel cautious hope at newfound cross-ethnic solidarity.
Jun. 10, 2021 and
A 3D hologram of the globe with circles and grids laid over to indicate communications and technology.

The Sixth United Nations GGE and International Law in Cyberspace

Top expert analysis of the much-anticipated report that provides consensus views among key States on the application of international law to cyberspace.
Jun. 10, 2021
A boy sits among women awaiting departure during the release of another group of Syrian families from the Kurdish-run al-Hol camp, which holds suspected relatives of Islamic State (IS) group fighters, in Hasakeh governorate in northeastern Syria, on January 28, 2021.

Gendering the Boy Child in the Context of Counterterrorism: The Situation of Boys in Northeast Syria

Much has been written about the gender of terrorism, and counterterrorism, including by myself. In much of that writing, there is a tendency to elide “gender” analysis with…
Jun. 8, 2021
Officials inspect the damaged Karbala airport in the Iraqi shrine city, one of the areas targeted by US military air strikes. March 13, 2020

A Legacy of Unrecognized Harm: DoD’s 2020 Civilian Casualties Report 

The Pentagon report appears to defy the congressional requirement to report on civilian casualties “that were confirmed, or reasonably suspected, to have resulted in civilian…
Jun. 7, 2021 and
Protesters hold up their mobile phones and candles during a candlelight vigil to honor those who have died during demonstrations against the military coup in Yangon on March 13, 2021. They wear face masks to protect against COVID-19.

Beyond the Coup in Myanmar: The Emerging New Politics of Gen Z

The atrocities committed by Tatmadaw soldiers have changed not only Myanmar’s political landscape but fundamentally transformed its political psyche.
Jun. 3, 2021
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte shakes hands with Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) Chairman Murad Ebrahim during the Ceremonial Confirmation of the Bangsamoro Organic Law Plebescite Law Canvass Results and Oath-taking of Transition Authority at the Malacanang palace in Manila on February 22, 2019.

A Pending Decision Pits Peace vs. Democracy in the Philippines

The question of postponing an election due next year in an autonomous region of Mindanao has some civil society organizations supporting the president's position.
Jun. 3, 2021
Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz points to a projector screen showing targets hit by Israeli army in Gaza, during a press briefing in Jerusalem on May 31, 2021. He does not wear a face mask.

The 2021 Gaza War and the Limits of International Humanitarian Law

"As long as international humanitarian law is unable to acknowledge the structural injustice of the situation—the asymmetry, the horror—discussions of these cases in the technical…
Jun. 1, 2021
Masked fighters with the National Resistance Brigades (NRB), the military wing of the Democracy Front Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), speak to members of the press in front of the ruins of the al-Jalaa tower which hosted the offices of the news agency Associated Press and the Aljazeera English channel, destroyed by Israeli strikes during the recent confrontations between Hamas and Israel, in Gaza City on May 23, 2021. They wear head gear and face masks that cover their entire faces except the eyes. A flag is draped over a podium with microphones. The fighters carry large guns.

The IDF Attack on Al Jalaa Tower: Criticisms Are Correct on the Law, But Mistaken in Applying It

A response to Professor Adil Haque's influential analysis.
May 28, 2021
Myanmar migrants in Thailand take part in a protest against the military coup in their home country, in front of the United Nations ESCAP building in Bangkok on March 7, 2021. They wear face masks to protect themselves from contracting COVID-19. Many wave the flag of Myanmar.

Beyond the Coup: Can the United Nations Escape Its History in Myanmar?

After decades of awkward and all-around frustrating engagement, the U.N. needs to step forward with a more flexible and conscious approach that shows it has learned from past mistakes.
May 27, 2021
The ruins of the Al-Jalaa Tower in Gaza City after it levelled by an Israeli air strike during the recent military conflict between Israel and the Palestinian enclave ruled by Hamas, after a ceasefire brokered by Egypt.

The IDF’s Unlawful Attack on Al Jalaa Tower

The IDF's reported view — that civilian apartments don't have to count in the legal analysis when taking such a strike — is flawed beyond repair, writes professor Adil Haque.…
May 27, 2021
The old courtroom building, pictured through an opening from inside an airplane hangar used for media activities at Camp Justice, site of the US war crimes tribunal compound at Guantanamo Bay US Naval Base, Cuba, April 9, 2014. A guard stands at the opening of the hanger.

Torture Evidence and the Guantanamo Military Commissions

Burying evidence of torture, while surreptitiously admitting the fruits of torture is not what a decent legal system does. Bringing to justice those accused of atrocious crimes…
May 26, 2021
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