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
3,736 Articles

The Just Security Podcast: What Next at Int’l Criminal Court After the Prosecutor’s Removal?

Ryan Goodman speaks with Rebecca Hamilton and Alex Whiting on the vote to remove Karim Khan as the ICC's chief prosecutor.
M23 soldiers walk down the street as M23 North Kivu provincial leadership marked one year of M23's control of Goma with a review of ongoing construction work and a visit to the Stade de l'Unite on February 6, 2026 in Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo.

DRC Takes Rwanda to the ICJ: Proxy Warfare, Layered Obligations, and the Future of State Responsibility

The DRC’s case against Rwanda could mark an important moment in the legal development of responsibility for proxy warfare.
The detectives sit in the foreground, the man in a suit jacket, the woman in a blouse, their backs to the camera, across a table from the prisoner, whose hands are folded atop the edge of the table, which is covered with files and photos and a tape recorder. A video recorder on a tripod is to the left.

Effective Interviewing, Not Torture: Lessons from the Méndez Principles Five Years On

The Mendez Principles, drafted to end the use of torture in interrogations, are being implemented variously across regions and institutions.
The International Criminal Court forecourt, entrance and sign.

The Future of the Int’l Criminal Court: What Follows After Removal of the Prosecutor

Analysis of the future of the International Criminal Court including selection of a new prosecutor.
A soldier holds a drone in the Pentagon parking lot on June 14, 2025 in Arlington, Virginia.

The Pentagon’s Autonomous Weapons Definitions Don’t Need an Overhaul, They Need an Update

The Pentagon's push to integrate AI into weapons systems exposes a critical gap: no one can agree on what "autonomous weapons" means.
Damaged bridge over a river with a large hole in the middle and people looking on.

When Civilian Infrastructure Becomes a Lawful Target

Civilian infrastructure is not targetable merely because it is economically significant or politically useful to strike, but only when it offers a definite military advantage.
General view taken at the start of the first hearing at the International Court of Justice in which Myanmar is accused of committing genocide against the country's Muslim minority, the Rohingya, in the Hague on January 12, 2026.

Genocide and Intent to Kill Revisited

An expert examines the implications of the ICJ's caselaw for the genocide case that Gambia brought against Myanmar.
A woman in a short, pleated white skirt and lime green top holds a child, as another woman stands next to her on the left, all against a landscape of trash, debris, and makeshift tents of fabric or corrugated metal.

Haiti’s New Courts Could Change Everything — Or Nothing At All

With international support, the Haitian government is creating two courts designed to prosecute complex crimes like the 2018 massacre at La Saline. Vetting will be crucial.
International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan seated at a desk at United Nations headquarters.

Before the Assembly: The Removal Vote and the Question of Fitness for Office

If the vote is understood as a judgment about the institution’s capacity to carry out its mandate, then the decision can be grounded in the interests of the Court.
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth testifies during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on July 21, 2026 in Washington, DC.

Clausewitz on Operation Epic Fury

Applying Clausewitz’s principles to Operation Epic Fury reveals the war’s strategic design–architecture linking military action to political purpose–was deficient from…
A red and white cargo ship at sea in the distance, with a yellow crane-like piece of equipment, presumably at the terminal, in the foreground.

Merchant Mariners: Unseen in Peacetime and Forgotten in Conflict

The U.S.-Israeli war with Iran illustrates how thousands of merchant mariners, so desperately needed globally, increasingly are trapped at sea during times of conflict.
The exterior of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague on March 28, 2026.

The State Department’s Campaign Against the ICC Rests on a Misunderstanding of How the Court Actually Works

While the ICC does have real problems, the State Department's campaign against it is premised on a misapprehension of how the Court works.
1-12 of 3,736 items

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