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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3,526 Articles
The dome of the US Capitol Building

Take Back: How Congress Can Reclaim Its Power

Early in the Clinton administration, I served on the National Security Council staff when former Rep. Howard Berman, a California Democrat, called me one day to tell me that the…
Estonian President Kersti Kaljulaid speaks to open the Estonian parliament Riigikogu's first opening sitting after elections on April 4, 2019 in Tallinn.

Estonia Speaks Out on Key Rules for Cyberspace

Estonian President Kaljulaid stakes out a bold position on collective countermeasures in cyberspace and clarifies the obligation of due diligence.
Trump holds up a chart of military hardware sales as he meets with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the Oval Office at the White House on March 20, 2018 in Washington, D.C.

An “Emergency” Arms Deal: Will Congress Acquiesce in Another Blow to Its Authority?

If Congress can’t stand up to protect its own prerogatives on arms sales, then its chances of being heard on anything else will be permanently diminished.
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Cooking the WMD Books: Politicizing the 2019 State Department Compliance Report

"I know. I used to work in State Department’s Bureau of Arms Control, Verification, and Compliance and then in the Office of the Under Secretary responsible for this report.…
Fully veiled women and children walk in the northern Kuridish-Syrian city of Qamishli as Uzbek women and children linked to the Islamic State group are handed over to diplomats from the Central Asian country for repatriation, on May 29, 2019.

Time to Bring Women and Children Home from Iraq and Syria

Kazakhstan proves that bringing home the women and children stranded in Iraq and Syria is possible for all countries facing the problem.
US National Security Advisor John Bolton speaks at the United Against Nuclear Iran Summit in New York on September 25, 2018.

Bolton’s Stated Predicate for War With Iran Doesn’t Work

"Bolton has repeatedly threatened that Iran’s support for its 'proxies' could bring 'a very strong response'—even military force. By threatening military action against Iran…
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir waves a walking stick as he rides in the back of a pickup truck in an advancing motorcade in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur province, on September 21, 2017.

Understanding the Decision to Revive the Sudanese Genocide Lawsuit Against BNP Paribas

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals recently ruled that a lawsuit brought by victims of genocide in Sudan against the French mega-bank can proceed.
People look at the Malvinas Islands Monument on the eve of the 30th anniversary of the 1982 South Atlantic war between Argentina and Britain over the Falkland Islands (Malvinas), in Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego, some 3100 km south of Buenos Aires, on April 1, 2012.

The Malvinas as a Post-Bellum Case Study: From Decolonization to the Memory of the Departed

After the International Court of Justice's Chagos opinion, the right to self-determination remains contested. But Malvinas is also a model for post-bellum diplomacy. What does…

A Critique of Defense Dept General Counsel Ney’s Remarks on the Law of War

"The law of war applies equally to U.S. forces and to ISIS, to Syria and to Russia. We should keep that in mind when we hear Ney recite Lieber’s dictum, 'The more vigorously…
11-year-old Ehsanullah is standing in a classroom which was totally destroyed in the conflict in 2007. Some classrooms are not usable, this one, though damaged, still hosting many students. But now full of water due to heavy rain and flood last night, students had to vacate the class and use another classroom today. Kandahar Province, southern Afghanistan – 16 April 2019

When War Comes to School

Editor’s Note: Displayed throughout this piece, photos by UNICEF-commissioned photographer Marko Kokic tell the personal stories of children whose schools have been attacked…
A damaged classroom following reported shelling and air strikes in the village of Kansafrah in Idlib on May 7, 2019.

A Step in the Right Direction: Militaries Changing Policies to Stop Using Schools

A fragile piece of papyrus dug up in Egypt in the 1970s shows that people have been struggling with the question of where soldiers should be quartered for thousands of years. The…
Paul Ney gives a talk at IDF

Remarks by Defense Dept General Counsel Paul C. Ney Jr. on the Law of War

The General Counsel of the U.S. Department of Defense, Hon. Paul C. Ney Jr., delivered the keynote address (full text below) at the Israel Defense Forces 3rd International Conference…
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