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.
3,769 Articles
ICC Holds Historic Hearing on U.S. Torture and Other Grave Crimes in Afghanistan
While “high crimes and misdemeanors” dominated the news cycle in Washington this month, the focus in The Hague was on grave crimes and mistreatment. Just days before the International…
Taking Stock at 40: The UN Convention Against the Taking of Hostages
A product of its time, the Convention emphasized preventing future terrorist attacks by punishing perpetrators. But now, several decades later, it’s clear that stopping hostage…
“Freedom, Peace, and Justice”: The Surprising Success of Sudan’s Glorious Revolution
What a difference a year makes. Today marks the one-year anniversary of the first protests that would eventually topple the brutal dictatorship of Sudanese President Omar al Bashir.…
Why the Settlements are a Problem for Benjamin Netanyahu
Despite the new U.S. position that West Bank settlements are not "per se" illegal, international accountability for Israeli settlement activity remains a real possibility.
Congress Expands Oversight of U.S. Payments for Civilian Deaths
The payments are among the only ways the U.S. military acknowledges and responds to civilian deaths or injuries in its operations, and previous reporting exposed significant gaps…
Hidden Gems: Civilian Casualties and Use of Force Reporting Provisions in the Annual Defense Bill
For all the ways that the NDAA falls short on various human rights issues, there are some bright spots that should not be overlooked.
The Application of International Law to Cyberspace: Sovereignty and Non-intervention
A new Chatham House Report discusses how key international law principles apply to States’ cyber operations below the threshold of use of force and makes recommendations to governments…
Boochani’s Tribunal: Normalizing Human Degradation at Borders
A complaint to the ICC on Australia's detention practices highlights a very clear risk that this precedent represents an emerging global normalcy of human degradation when it comes…
D.C. Circuit Considers Limits on Guantanamo Detention
The court will hear oral arguments today in Abdul Razak Ali v. Trump on the central question of whether the Due Process Clause applies to limit the length of detention at Guantanamo…
The Specter of Interventionism is Haunting Latin America
A series of coordinated moves - OAS decisions, UN debates, declarations to the press by senior U.S. officials, and the revival of the Rio Treaty - are building a narrative towards…
Trump’s Aim to Go Big on Nuclear Arms Control Should Begin by Extending New START
If President Trump actually seeks to avoid an arms race, maintain a cap on the Russian nuclear arsenal, and create the conditions for follow-on talks with Russia and new negotiations…
Next Steps in Liberia’s Long Quest for Justice, 10 Years After Commission Report
A full decade after Liberia's Truth and Reconciliation Commission recommended establishment of a war crimes court to seek justice for atrocities during the country's 14 years of…