International Law

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Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs Rt. Hon. Lamberto Dini signs the Rome Statute at the Rome Conference in July 1998.

The ICC Wants Justice But Has No Mandate

The recent escalation in the ongoing conflict between the United States and the International Criminal Court (ICC) is as unfortunate as it is predictable, having come to a head…
A medical staff at Damascus Countryside Specialised Hospital holds a placard reading, "Assad Sees no Red Lines, Only Green Lights!!"condemning a suspected chemical weapons attack on the Syrian town of Khan Sheikhun.

The Syrian War’s Forcing Effect on International Law

A new book by Scharf, Sterio, and Williams demonstrates how global legal standards have shifted with the increasing complexity of war.
Destruction at Karbala airport in the Iraqi shrine city, one of the areas targeted by US military air strikes against a pro-Iranian group in Iraq following the deaths of two Americans and a Briton in a rocket attack the previous night on a US base in Taji. Some soldiers inspect the damage while others stand guard with guns. March 13, 2020

It’s Time Iraq Accepts Legal Responsibility for Its Iran-Backed Militias

Legal reform of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMFs) would have a more durable effect on these hostile militias than a few US air strikes.
A fighter with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) monitors on surveillance screens, crowded prison cells filled with people accused of being affiliated with the Islamic State (IS) group, at a prison in the northeastern Syrian city of Hasakeh on October 26, 2019.

Repatriating Foreign Fighters from Syria: International Law and Political Will (Part 2)

The detention conundrum: States rely on non-state groups for counterterrorism operations, but they are simultaneously reluctant to accept the return of terrorists captured and…
A member of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) looks through a door window to a crowded cell where men suspected to be affiliated with the Islamic State (IS) group are jailed in northeast Syria in the city of Hasakeh on October 26, 2019.

Repatriating Foreign Fighters from Syria: International Law and Political Will (Part 1)

Does international law require States to repatriate their foreign fighters?
Delegates taking part in the U.N. Conference on the Exploration and Peaceful Uses of Outer Space visit the USSR exhibit organized in connection with the Conference, Aug. 14, 1968.

Military Space Operations and International Law

(Editor’s Note: The absence of a comprehensive analysis of the legal framework for military operations in outer space represents a troubling deficiency in the understanding of…
Iranians march across a bridge on January 5, 2020 in the northwestern city of Ahvaz to pay homage to top general Qasem Soleimani, after he was killed in a US strike in Baghdad.

Iran’s Leaders Preserve the Republic With a Hybrid of International and Islamic Law

The rhetorical strategy allows them to address the world and Iranians at the same time, while passing on different messages.
Paul Ney Gives a Talk at Vanderbilt Law School on September 3, 2019.

Top DoD Lawyer Stresses U.S. Compliance with the Rule of Law in Military Operations

On September 3, 2019, Paul Ney, the General Counsel of the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), delivered the Charney Distinguished Lecture in International Law at Vanderbilt Law…
The seals of the U.S. Cyber Command, the National Secrity Agency and the Central Security Service.

U.S. Offensive Cyber Operations against Economic Cyber Intrusions: An International Law Analysis – Part II

Part I demonstrated that the United States is likely to struggle to make a convincing argument that economic cyber intrusions carried out against it breach international law. Consequently,…
General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, Iran's Head of the Revolutionary Guard's aerospace division, looks at debris from a downed US drone reportedly recovered within Iran's territorial waters and put on display by the Revolutionary Guard in the capital Tehran on June 21, 2019.

Self-Defense in International Law: What Level of Evidence?

With the question of whether Iran's actions justify the use of force, the issue of evidence is once again at the forefront of international debate. So, how much evidence does a…
International Criminal Court (ICC) chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda (C) sits at the courtroom of the International Criminal Court (ICC) during the closing statements of the trial of former Congolese warlord Bosco Ntaganda in the Hague, the Netherlands, on August 28, 2018.

Deconstructing the Int’l Criminal Court’s Decision on Afghanistan

The decision of the International Criminal Court’s Pre-Trial Chamber II refusing to open an investigation into crimes committed in Afghanistan establishes a new Rome Statute…
Rwandan Hutu rebel Ignace Murwanashyaka (C) of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) showing a declaration flanked by Baptiste Koneza (R) and Christophe Hakizabero (L) at the Sant'Egidio religious community headquarter in Rome.

A Congo War Crimes Decision: What It Means for Universal Jurisdiction Litigation in Germany and Beyond

The German Federal Court of Justice, the country's court of last resort in criminal and private law, recently announced its much-anticipated decision in a Congo War Crimes case.…
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