International and Foreign
2,949 Articles

War-Sustaining Activities and Direct Participation in the DOD Law of War Manual
In a recent post on Lawfare, Butch Bracknell discussed the use of leaflets by the United States to warn truck drivers transporting oil for ISIL of an impending attack. Bracknell…

The last-minute “correction” that might have saved the Paris climate accord
Back in March, in connection with the then-not-finalized Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action regarding Iranian nuclear capabilities, Jack Goldsmith and I explained the critical…

On Human Rights Day, One Year On: No Apology and No Accountability for US Torture
A year ago yesterday, the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence released a redacted version of the executive summary of its exhaustive report on the CIA’s detention and interrogation…

European Human Rights Court Deals a Heavy Blow to the Lawfulness of Bulk Surveillance
In a seminal decision updating and consolidating its previous jurisprudence on surveillance, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights took a sideways swing at mass…

A Legal Map of Airstrikes in Syria (Part 2)
Editor’s Note: This is the second post in a two-part series discussing the legal justifications various countries have put forth related to airstrikes in Syria. You can find…

A Legal Map of Airstrikes in Syria (Part 1)
Editor’s Note: This is the first post in a two-part series discussing the legal justifications various countries have put forth related to airstrikes in Syria. You can find…

Cross-Border Data Requests: A Response to Greg Nojeim
Editor’s note: This post also appears on Lawfare. Last week on Lawfare, Greg Nojeim responded to — and raised a set of questions about — our proposed framework for dealing…

An ISIL AUMF WTF?
Two weeks ago, the Washington Post ran a story by David Weigel about a draft Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) against ISIL being prepared by Senator Lindsey…

Targeting Tankers — and Their Drivers — Under the Law of War (Part 2)
Leaflets dropped 45 minutes before airstrikes targeting ISIL oil tankers. Image credit: US Defense Department Editor’s Note: This is the second in a two-part post discussing…

Targeting Tankers Under the Law of War (Part 1)
Editor’s Note: This is the first in a two-part post discussing how the law of war applies to airstrikes against oil tanker trucks. You can read Part Two here. On November…

International Law and the UN GGE Report on Information Security
The international community recently took an important step toward establishing global norms of behavior in cyberspace with the publication of the UN’s outcome report from its…

An Update on European Measures Addressing Terrorism in the Aftermath of the French Attacks
In the aftermath of multiple terrorist atrocities in Paris on November 13, concerted legal and policy action is being taken both domestically and regionally. Coordinated regional…