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Just Security

CIA Operatives Should Not be Considered Armed Forces Under International Law

Just Security readers are now familiar with the German Federal Prosecutor General’s opinion regarding a 2010 drone strike in Pakistan attributed to the CIA. The opinion is remarkably…
Just Security

CIA and OLC Must Release More “Secret” Documents on Aulaqi Drone Strike

On Thursday, a federal district court in New York issued its latest ruling in the ACLU’s long-running Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) litigation seeking the legal and factual…
Just Security

DOD’s Unbalanced Stance on Precautions Against Harming Civilians

Editor’s Note: Just Security is holding a “mini forum” on the new Defense Department Law of War Manual. This series includes posts from Sean Watts, Eric Jensen, and others.…
Just Security

Germany’s Highest-Ranking Prosecutor on the Legality of Drone Strikes – and Much More

In a must-read decision, the Federal Prosecutor General in Germany (the equivalent of the U.S. Attorney General) examines in great depth the legality of a drone strike that killed…
Just Security

Human Shields and the DOD Law of War Manual: Can’t We Improve the Debate?

In a recent post, Prof. Adil Ahmad Haque attacked the new Defense Department Law of War Manual’s position on proportionality and human shields. Evidently, Haque thinks that the…
Just Security

Questions That Should be Asked About Seal Team 6 and the Laws of War

This post is the latest installment of our “Monday Reflections” feature, in which a different Just Security editor examines the big stories from the previous week or looks…
Just Security

The CIA Can’t Keep Its Drone Propaganda Straight

This week, one government intelligence agency, after patiently and methodically tracking a terrorist leader for months through precise electronic surveillance, successfully targeted…
Just Security

Public Opinion, International Law, and Drone Strikes: Some Reflections

We commend Professor Charles Dunlap for his excellent recent post on international law and public support for drone strikes. As he notes, there are many points of agreement between…
Just Security

Casualties and Polls: Some Observations

In a recent post provocatively entitled “New Poll: American Support for Drone Strikes Plummets When Innocent US Civilians Killed,” Just Security’s editor Ryan Goodman energetically…
Just Security

What Civilians Themselves Say about Targeting and their Participation in Conflict

“What I think is that there is no line at all … Civilians can turn into fighters at any time. Anybody can change from a fighter to a civilian, all in one day, all in one moment.”…
Just Security

The Relationship Between Context and Proportionality: A Reply to Cohen and Shany

I am honored that Deans Amichai Cohen and Yuval Shany, both superb scholars that I hold in the highest regard, have responded to the Just Security post I wrote with my colleague…
Just Security

Why not, Secretary Carter?

Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has announced that a U.S. drone strike recently killed one of AQAP’s senior commanders, Nasr Ibn Ali al-Ansi.  This would, of course,…
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