International Law

Just Security offers expert analysis of international law and its role in addressing global challenges. Our coverage includes litigation in international and regional tribunals, the process of international law-making, analysis of compliance and accountability for international law violations–including international criminal justice, and challenges to the international legal order.

× Clear Filters
3,769 Articles
A medical support team augmentation class trains on Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, Texas, Nov. 18, 2014. U.S. military members learned how to use Personal Protective Equipment and proper procedures when working in areas contaminated with the Ebola virus.

COVID-19 and Health Systems: Responding to Unpredictable Predictability

Health systems across the world have been tested by this pandemic, and many have been found wanting, surprised by the pandemic’s ferocity and its unknowness, its seeming unpredictability.…
A sign reading, "Office of Military Commissions Expeditionary Legal Complex Guantanamo Bay, Cuba" stands close to where pre-trial hearings are being held for the detainees at the military prison on June 25, 2013 in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Getting It Wrong: The 9/11 Military Commission and the Justiciability of Armed Conflict

In an apparent effort to preserve its own jurisdiction while proceeding towards trial, the 9/11 military commission has made a hash of its armed conflict jurisprudence. It has…
Thumbprint with austrian flag on digital background

The Importance of New Statements on Sovereignty in Cyberspace by Austria, the Czech Republic and United States

With now five States openly supporting the sovereignty-as-a-rule position, the U.K. and United States (or at least the U.S. Department of Defense) find themselves in the minority,…
International Criminal Court Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda delivers her semi-annual briefing on recent developments concerning cases in Libya via a virtual meeting.

National Security at the United Nations This Week (May 1-8)

(Editor’s Note: This is the latest in Just Security’s weekly series keeping readers up to date on developments at the United Nations at the intersection of national security,…
Afghan men gather near the road as a military convoy by soldiers from the 1st Platoon, 1-64 Armoured Batallion, US Army - operating under NATO - roll-past security patrols at Morghan-Kecha village in Daman district, Kandahar on September 6, 2012.

Here’s What the New DoD Policy on Civilian Harm Should Include

It should standardize good practice and set the bar where it belongs: safeguarding civilian life from the effects of U.S. military operations.
US Army from NATO and Afghan commando forces at a checkpoint during a patrol against Islamic State militants at the Deh Bala district in the eastern province of Nangarhar Province. There are multiple vehicles around the checkpoint.

Grading DOD’s Annual Civilian Casualties Report: “Incomplete”

The new information demonstrates how much progress the department has made and yet how much of a paradigm shift is still needed for full accountability.
Electronics Technician 2nd Class Hao Lienh, assigned to Commander Task Force 56, wears a face mask and stands watch on a Mark VI Patrol Boat before a weapons sustainment exercise in the Arabian Gulf, April 16, 2020.

Iranian Gunboat Harassment and the Rules of Engagement

What to make of Trump's order to “shoot down and destroy” lranian boats that harass US vessels. International law and Standing Rules of Engagement place significant limits.
Syrians sell vegetables next to buildings heavily damaged and collapsing from Syria's civil war, in the central city of Homs, on April 28, 2020 as Muslims mark the holy month of Ramadan.

Accountability in the Time of COVID-19: Syria & Iraq

The coronavirus crisis has dominated the global news coverage, but the war in Syria has not gone away. The ceasefire brokered by Turkey and Russia in March 2020 remains fragile,…
A common hypersonic glide body (C-HGB) launches from Pacific Missile Range Facility during a Defense Department flight experiment, Kauai, Hawaii, March 19, 2020.

Let’s Make a Deal: How to Mitigate the Risk of Hypersonic Weapons

Despite the destructive capability of hypersonic weapons, international arms control law currently does little to regulate their development, testing, or production.
U.S. President Donald Trump welcomes Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Monday, April 3, 2017, at the West Wing entrance of the White House in Washington, D.C.

Coronavirus Adds Urgency to Ending Egypt’s Detention and Torture of Children

The United States has long justified its support for Egyptian security services as necessary for the security and stability of Egypt and the region. Yet the means by which the…
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres prepares for a virtual press hearing at a desk with a blue backdrop behind him with the United Nations logo.

National Security at the United Nations This Week (April 25-May 1)

(Editor’s Note: This is the latest in Just Security’s weekly series keeping readers up to date on developments at the United Nations at the intersection of national security,…
U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu participate in a joint statement in the East Room of the White House on January 28, 2020 in Washington, DC.

Trump’s “Deal of the Century” is Bibi’s Dream Come True

Ambassador Peter Mulrean (ret.) writes about the state of play inside Israel and the window PM Netanyahu has for annexing the West Bank and burying the Oslo Accords.
1-12 of 3,769 items

DON'T MISS A THING. Stay up to date with Just Security curated newsletters: