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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3,544 Articles
Logo for Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission United States Congress - Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Tom Lantos Commission: Enhancing U.S. Ability to Pursue Accountability for Atrocities

I had the honor of testifying last week before the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission at a hearing devoted to “Pursuing Accountability for Atrocities.” My written testimony…
Women and children evacuated from the Islamic State (IS) group's embattled holdout of Baghouz arrive at a screening area held by the US-backed Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), in the eastern Syrian province of Deir Ezzor, on March 6, 2019.

Repatriating ISIS Families: An Opportunity to Show that “Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism” Can Work

Working with returning mothers and children may be the best opportunity that any country, or the international community more broadly, will ever have to get preventing/countering…
Afghan residents clear rubble from their homes after they were damaged by US airstrikes during ongoing clashes with Islamic State (IS) militants in the Achin district of Nangarhar province on September 12, 2017.

Defense Policy Bill Should Require Reporting of Ex Gratia Payments

Without mandatory reporting on condolence payments in the National Defense Authorization Act, Congress—and the public—may remain in the dark about whether and how the Defense…
Just Security

Marik String Appointment as State Department’s Top Lawyer Raises Questions

As a former senior State Department official put it, “The idea that someone so few years out of law school, and not even practicing law for all that time, is in the office occupied…
House Armed Services Committee ranking member Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA) questions witnesses during a hearing in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill April 12, 2018 in Washington, DC.

What’s In the New Draft National Defense Authorization Act

"The baseline draft bill, which is also called the chairman’s mark, touches on key issues ranging from the militarization of the southern border to deterring Russia and reemphasizing…
An Iraqi student stands on a pile of rocks and debris in a classroom following a blast at a school in Baghdad's Shiite neighborhood of Sadr City on December 7, 2009.

Focusing on Armed Non-State Actors: Protecting Education in Armed Conflict

While States have formal opportunities to commit themselves to the protection of schools, ANSAs do not, even though it is crucial to acknowledge the role they play in education…
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.
Just Security

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…
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