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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.

Civilian HarmIsrael-Hamas WarRussia-UkraineSudanLaw of Armed Conflict/IHLUse of Force
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3,331 Articles
The empty courtroom of the Commissions building where on Tuesday preliminary hearings will begin for four detainees held on the Naval Base is seen August 22, 2004 in Guantanamo, Cuba. Six flags stand at the front of the room.

How to Fix the U.S. Litigation Position in Key Pending Cases

The Biden administration has the opportunity, and responsibility, to disavow the Trump administration’s dangerous litigation positions and the ideologies they reflect in these…
Jan. 27, 2021 and
Head of the Houthi prisoner exchange committee Abdulkader al-Murtada shakes hands with Head of the Yemeni government delegation Hadi Haig between ICRC Director for the Near and Middle East Fabrizio Carboni and UN Special Envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths at the end of a week-long meeting on a Yemen prisoner exchange agreement on September 27, 2020 in Glion, western Switzerland. None of them wear face masks and they stand close to one another.

US Terrorist Designation for Houthis is Bad for Yemen Even Beyond Crippling Aid Efforts

The Trump administration’s labeling of the armed group in its dying days in office also imperils political prospects for peace.
Jan. 25, 2021
Russian nuclear missile rolls along Red Square during the military parade marking the 75th anniversary of Nazi defeat, on June 24, 2020 in Moscow, Russia. The requirement to wear masks and gloves to combat a spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) is still in effect in Moscow, but none of the military members lined up wear face masks.

The Demise of Arms Control Extends Far Beyond Nuclear Weapons

Bilateral and multilateral mechanisms are disintegrating amid tech advances, and “grey zones” below military conflict thresholds are ripe for exploitation.
Jan. 22, 2021 and
People walk past missiles manufactured by Lockheed Martin displayed during the Association of the United States Army (AUSA)Annual Meeting and Exposition in Washington, DC, October 13, 2014.

Toward A More Responsible US Arms Trade Policy: Recommendations for the Biden-Harris Administration

Biden pledged a foreign policy that would restore U.S. moral leadership. Ending U.S. complicity in human rights abuses, civilian harm, and humanitarian crises through the structural…
Jan. 19, 2021 , and 7 more

Reconsidering the Digitalization of International Criminal Justice

Tech is heralded as a way to increase access and participation in international justice. But what are the costs of these digital justice mechanisms?
Jan. 19, 2021
A watch tower is seen in the currently closed Camp X-Ray at the U.S. Naval Station on June 27, 2013 in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Barbed wire can be seen in both the background and foreground of the photo.

On Guantanamo’s 19th Anniversary, A Renewed Call to Close It

Nineteen years ago today, the administration of President George W. Bush sent the first detainees to the Guantanamo Bay Detention Center for the purpose of detaining them beyond…
Jan. 11, 2021
Acting Defense Secretary Christopher C. Miller address media at the Pentagon, Washington, D.C. November 17, 2020.

Pentagon Moves Undermine Counterterrorism Strategy

Instead of acquiescing to the whims of a lame-duck president, Acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller should insist upon maintaining sufficient capability to prevent the resurgence…
Jan. 5, 2021 and
Presidential guards with large weapons stand guard near a campaign poster leaning against a wall with children sitting on top. The poster shows incumbent president during his opening campaign rally for the presidential election in Bangui, on December 12 2020.

Alarms Raised in Central African Republic: Pre-Election Fighting Threatens Civilians and Fragile Peace

Ahead of elections this weekend, risks of a dramatic escalation of violence and political crisis in Central African Republic. What you need to know.
Dec. 25, 2020 , and 2 more
Trump

Can a Pardon Be a War Crime?: When Pardons Themselves Violate the Laws of War

Editor’s note: Originally published on May 25, 2019; with an author’s note published on Dec. 24, 2020. Author’s note, Dec. 24, 2020: Not all corrupt pardons…
Dec. 24, 2020
U.S. Army SSG. Tyler Laliberte embraces his family after returning from a 9-month deployment to Afghanistan on December 10, 2020 at Fort Drum, New York.

Military Families are Gunning for Peace this Holiday Season

I share my family’s story to underline the urgency behind avoiding war with Iran. We’ve become a nation that engages in wars of choice. We cannot continue down this current…
Dec. 23, 2020
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping before the meeting at the Great Hall of People in Beijing, China on April 25, 2019. Country flags are lined behind them.

Serbia’s Delicate Dance with the EU and China

While European Union membership would be beneficial to Serbia as a whole, it may not serve the interests of the country’s ruling elites.
Dec. 22, 2020 and
Trump and Putin’s silhouettes as they walk side-by-side.

“Strategic Silence” and State-Sponsored Hacking: The US Gov’t and SolarWinds

The absence to date of executive branch attribution and condemnation of the SolarWinds intrusions may be strategic silence—a tactic employed in the immediate aftermath of past…
Dec. 18, 2020
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