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.
3,707 Articles
Al Bahlul Argument Post-Mortem
If one thing was clear from this morning’s oral argument before the en banc D.C. Circuit in al-Bahlul v. United States, it was the consistent skepticism from at least five…
Reforming FISA: A Critical Look at the Wyden/Udall Proposal and Foreign Surveillance
A new bipartisan bill co-sponsored by two of the most vocal critics of the NSA does not go far enough to protect the average non-U.S. person from indiscriminate surveillance. …
The Other, Lurking Constitutional Question in al-Bahlul
I would add only one thing to Jen’s thorough summary of the al-Bahlul argument next Monday, about something she references at the very end of her post: Besides ex post…
Are the Press Reports of the Security Council’s Draft Syria Resolution Accurate? How weak or strong is it?
After weeks of diplomatic wrangling, the permanent members of the Security Council emerged last night with a compromise draft resolution on chemical weapons in Syria. The key part…
Preview — Al Bahlul in the D.C. Circuit: The Fate of Military Commissions at Guantánamo
On Monday, September 30, the D.C. Circuit, sitting en banc, will hear argument in al Bahlul v. United States – a case definitely worth watching. The immediate question is whether…
Charles Taylor Verdict Today: New Standard of Liability for Aid to Rebel Forces?
The Appeals Chamber of the Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL) today unanimously upheld the conviction and 50-year sentence of former Liberian President Charles Taylor for aiding…
Resolving Cyber-Related Ambiguities in the Law of War: A Reaction to Jensen
Many thanks to Eric Jensen for his excellent post on cyber issues, the use of force, and international law. The increasing number and sophistication of cyber attacks threatening…
Unprivileged Does Not Mean Prohibited
In his latest post, Ryan takes issue with those who argue that it would violate international law for a state civilian agency, such as the CIA, to use force in an armed conflict. …
Resolving Cyber Issues Sets the State for Future Weapons
[A note from Ryan Goodman: On Monday, Professor Michael Schmitt helped launch Just Security with a Guest Post on the law of cyber conflict. Professor Eric Talbot Jensen accepted…
Syria and the Law of Humanitarian Intervention (Part I: Political Miscues and U.S. Law)
Crises are lived forward but understood backwards. While it is still too early to know how the Syria crisis of 2013 will end, we can start evaluating what precedents of law and…
Good Reasons May Exist to Close CIA Drone Program—But Claim that CIA Agents are “Unprivileged Belligerents” is Not One of Them
Senator John McCain has vowed to accelerate the effort to transition control of drone operations from the CIA to the Pentagon, and he will likely have support from top Senate Democrats.…
On Syria, The System Worked
President Barack Obama’s critics have been virtually unanimous in their condemnation of his decision to ask Congress for authorization to use military force against Syria. …