International and Foreign
3,170 Articles
Would Arming Anti-Assad Rebels Trigger an “International Armed Conflict”—and War Crimes Prosecutions?
Earlier this week, Reuters reported that Gulf Arab States are considering arming militant groups in Syria to fend off Assad’s onslaught in Aleppo and elsewhere. There may be…
The UK’s Al-Saadoon Case: Stepping Back From the Extraterritorial Application of the ECHR for Physical Force
On September 9, the United Kingdom’s Court of Appeal delivered its judgment in Al-Saadoon and Others v. Secretary of State for Defence. This is a case dealing with almost 1,300…
Triggers and Thresholds of Non-International Armed Conflict
When and where does the law of non-international armed conflict apply? Since most contemporary armed conflicts are fought between states and organized armed groups, or between…
Aiding and Abetting for Saudi War Crimes: Lessons from Holder v. Humanitarian Law Project
In 2010, human rights organizations argued in Holder v. Humanitarian Law Project that if we want to promote compliance with the law of armed conflict, we cannot punish advocacy…
Application of Human Rights Law to Military Actions Abroad: A Recent UK Judgment
Last month, the English High Court issued a judgment in Kontic v. Ministry of Defence, a case that dealt with whether and when the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) applies…
Letter to the Editor: Suggestions for Just Security’s Questions to the Presidential Candidates
I like the idea of Just Security‘s listing questions for the presidential nominees. As you ran them again before last night’s debate, and presumably may run them at…
Just Security’s Questions for Clinton and Trump
Given the importance of tonight’s prime-time debate between US presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, we’re again running our list of vital national…
Are the U.S. and U.K. parties to the Saudi-led armed conflict against the Houthis in Yemen?
A series of posts at Just Security have focused on the rules that apply to U.S. and U.K. support for the Saudi-led coalition’s military operations against the Houthi rebels…
The Saudi Weapons Block Wouldn’t be the First: Some Past Examples of Halts on US Arms Transfers
In the United States, concerns over the conduct of the Saudi-led coalition in the war in Yemen have grown in intensity in recent weeks amid reports that US-supplied weapons have…
In Turkey, Where the More Things Change . . .
The past couple of months have been tumultuous in Turkey. In short order, an ill-conceived military coup was followed by popular mass protest, the quick return of President Recep…
Trump’s Calls to Pillage Iraqi Oil
In his appearance with Secretary Clinton at NBC’s Commander-in-Chief Forum earlier this month, Donald Trump called for actions that amount to a war crime. Addressing US policies…
How the Risk of an Int’l Criminal Court Investigation Should Affect Military Targeting Practices
The International Criminal Court currently has jurisdiction over the territory and nationals of 124 States Parties to the Court, plus Darfur and Libya, where jurisdiction was conferred…