Distinction
20 Articles
Campaign Promises of War Crimes: Now a Stain on the Military
As we try to figure out what happened in Yemen during the U.S. military raid on January 28th, there are a host of questions that remain unanswered. Here, we explore another very…
Thoughts on Distinction and Proportionality in the December 2016 Revision to the Law of War Manual
The new revisions to the DoD Law of War Manual that the Department of Defense released last week are welcome in several respects. Four improvements are especially noteworthy:…
The DoD Law of War Manual and the False Appeal of Differentiating Types of Civilians
In a recent speech at NYU, Department of Defense General Counsel Jennifer O’Connor suggested that after an impending revision, the US Law of War Manual would reflect the position…
Two lingering concerns about the forthcoming Law of War Manual amendments
We commend Department of Defense General Counsel Jennifer O’Connor for her very important speech at NYU Monday evening—especially for her vivid, detailed account of how the…
Must Military Medical and Religious Personnel Be Accounted for in a Proportionality Analysis?
In a recent post, Marty Lederman echoed criticisms previously leveled by Oona Hathaway about the US DOD’s Law of War Manual. The thrust of their criticism is that several Manual…
Troubling proportionality and rule-of-distinction provisions in the Law of War Manual
Oona Hathaway is absolutely right to be alarmed, and deeply concerned, about the “civilians’ assumption of risk” provisions in the new DoD Law of War Manual. If you haven’t…
Is it legal to target ISIL’s oil facilities and cash stockpiles?
An important story in yesterday’s New York Times explains how the U.S. and coalition forces have dramatically increased their targeting of ISIL’s oil facilities (including…
Are all “members” of ISIL targetable?
Rita Siemion and Heather Brandon of Human Rights First have published a comprehensive post on some of the more important aspects of Brian Egan’s speech to ASIL. (My own…