Executive Branch
Just Security’s expert authors provide analysis of the U.S. executive branch related to national security, rights, and the rule of law. Analysis and informational resources focus on the executive branch’s powers and their limits, and the actions of the president, administrative agencies, and federal officials.
4,604 Articles
De Facto and De Jure Non-International Armed Conflicts: Is It Time to Topple Tadić?
When does violence between a state and non-state actor constitute an armed conflict and thus trigger the system of legal rules that apply in non-international armed conflict (NIAC)?…
If Burundi Leaves the Int’l Criminal Court, Can the Court Still Investigate Past Crimes There?
Last week, Burundi President Pierre Nkurunziza’s office announced that his country had begun taking steps to leave the International Criminal Court, of which it has been a member…
China’s “Strategic Impatience” on the North Korean Crisis
How does China view the nuclear crisis that is developing in North Korea and the legal and policy strategies for addressing it? How should we understand recent discussions of support…
Why French President’s Threat of War Crimes Prosecutions against Russia, Syria Rings Hollow—But Needn’t
CNN is reporting that Russian President Vladimir Putin has canceled a visit to France next week following French President Francois Hollande’s statement that he would tell Putin…
Is the United States Already in an “International Armed Conflict” with Syria?
Many are debating whether the Obama administration should essentially go to war with Syria in an effort to halt the atrocities that Assad is committing in Aleppo and elsewhere…
5 and Counting: Russia Vetoes No-Fly-Zone in the Security Council
Over the weekend, Russia exercised its veto—again and unsurprisingly—to block a draft Security Council resolution (S/2016/846) that would have created a no-fly-zone over the…
Can States Legally Provide Targeting Assistance to War Criminals?
Last week, when I challenged an argument for US liability for war crimes in Yemen, I didn’t anticipate ending up on the other side of a (somewhat heated) Twitter debate with…
A Humanitarian Exception to the Principle of Non-Intervention?: Measures Below the Use of Armed Force to Save Aleppo
Do the atrocities in Aleppo and elsewhere in Syria permit the United States and other states to engage in intrusive actions against the Assad regime that would not ordinarily be…
If the Saudi-Led Coalition is Committing War Crimes, the US is Aiding and Abetting Them
A few days ago, Ryan Goodman announced on Twitter that we should expect “a challenge to (some) critics of Defense Department support to Saudi Arabia.” Jay Shooster published…
Different Human Rights at Home and Abroad: Immunity for British Soldier during Overseas Operations
Yesterday, October 4, 2016, U.K. Defence Secretary Michael Fallon proclaimed that British soldiers need to be protected from “spurious claims.” He said that soldiers should…
The UK’s New Derogation Policy for Armed Conflicts: Making a Success of the European Convention on Human Rights?
Speaking at the annual conference of the Conservative Party on October 4, U.K. Defence Secretary Michael Fallon sought to reassure Britain’s nervous allies and the general public…
Whose Armed Conflict? Which Law of Armed Conflict?
When one state, say, the United States, uses military force on the territory of another state, say, Syria or Pakistan, without the consent of that state, what legal rules constrain…