Law of Armed Conflict (LOAC)

Japan's H-IIA rocket carrying the Kirameki-2 satellite is launched from Tanegashima Space Centre in southern Tanegashima island, Kagoshima prefecture, on January 24, 2017.

War in Space: How International Humanitarian Law Might Apply

(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…

Mar. 9, 2020 Michael Schmitt and Sqn. Ldr. Kieran Tinkler

A small Yemeni child walks barefoot on rubble of a building destroyed in an airstrike carried out by the Saudi-led coalition, at the Old City of Sana'a, on July 07, 2019 in Sana'a, Yemen.

Preventing and Responding to Civilian Casualties: An Upcoming Discussion on Law, Policy, and Progress

Civilian casualties are inevitable in armed conflict. Nonetheless, international law requires armed forces to distinguish between civilians and lawful military objectives, and…

Mar. 9, 2020 Keith Petty

U.S. Air Force Space Command Gen. John "Jay" Raymond stands next to the flag of the newly established U.S. Space Command, the sixth national armed service, in the Rose Garden at the White House August 29, 2019 in Washington, DC.

NATO Recognizes Space as an “Operational Domain”: One Small Step Toward a Rules-Based International Order in Outer Space

(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…

Mar. 4, 2020 Hitoshi Nasu

Sri Lanka's President Gotabaya Rajapaksa (C) along with Army Commander Shavendra Silva (L) and Navy Chief Piyal De Silva stand to attention during Sri Lanka's 72nd Independence Day celebrations in Colombo on February 4, 2020.

U.S. Issues Travel Ban on Sri Lankan Military Leader

The U.S. State Department’s announcement of a travel ban on Sri Lankan Lieutenant General Shavendra Silva, current commander of the Sri Lankan Army and acting chief of the Defense…

Feb. 20, 2020 Randle DeFalco

An Afghan orthopaedic technician makes artificial limbs in a workshop at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) hospital for war victims and the disabled in Kabul.

When Professionalism Mattered: Dissent Against U.S. Policy on Landmines

President Trump's retaliation against principled dissenters and his jettisoning of longstanding U.S. policy on landmines converge in a look back to see how another administration…

Feb. 18, 2020 Ambassador Donald Steinberg

A female de-miner works to clear mines in Muhamalai, one of the biggest minefields in the world, on March 3, 2019 in Muhamalai, Sri Lanka. A sign with a skull and cross bones reads, “Danger Mines!” in three different languages.

US Should Think Again About Reversing Landmine Policy

The Trump administration announced Friday that the United States will re-start using and producing antipersonnel landmines. The new policy follows the U.S. retreat from multilateralism…

Feb. 4, 2020 Mary Wareham

Rescue teams work amidst debris after a Ukrainian plane carrying 176 passengers crashed near Imam Khomeini airport in the Iranian capital Tehran early in the morning on January 8, 2020, killing everyone on board.

Human Shielding (by Omission) in Iran

Iran violated its legal obligations to take passive precautions to protect civilians under its control, with the intent that those civilians shield military targets from attack.…

Jan. 31, 2020 Adil Ahmad Haque

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.

Jan. 16, 2020 Anicée Van Engeland

An Iranian woman walks beneath a poster honouring the victims of a Ukrainian passenger jet accidentally shot down in the capital last week, in front of the Amirkabir University in the capital Tehran, on January 13, 2020.

Iran Plane Downing: Likely a Violation of International Humanitarian Law (But Not a War Crime)

Iran most likely violated the law of armed conflict in shooting down Ukraine Airlines PS752 but did not commit a war crime.

Jan. 14, 2020 Evelyne Schmid

Targeted Killing of General Soleimani: Why the Laws of War Should Apply, and Why it Matters

In her thought provoking and thorough piece, Agnes Callamard addresses – among many other issues – the question whether the US strike against General Qassem Soleimani was subject…

Jan. 13, 2020 Eliav Lieblich

Side by side photos of a Congressional document labeled, “H.J. Res. 542” and the remnants of the U.S. airstrike still on fire that killed Soleimani and al-Muhandis on Jan. 3, 2020 outside the Baghdad International Airport.

The Soleimani Strike and War Powers

Key Legal Questions, With Preview of a New Research Database

Jan. 6, 2020 Tess Bridgeman

An aerial view of the Israeli settlement of Efrat near the Palestinian city of Bethlehem south of Jerusalem, in the occupied West Bank on November 19, 2019.

Assessing the New U.S. “View” on the Legality of Israeli Settlements in the West Bank

In his remarks to the press yesterday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the following with respect to the settlement of Israeli civilians in the West Bank. I’ve highlighted…

Nov. 19, 2019 Marty Lederman