Law of Armed Conflict (LOAC)
688 Articles

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…

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.…

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.

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.

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…

The Soleimani Strike and War Powers
Key Legal Questions, With Preview of a New Research Database

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…

Suit Against Sri Lankan Presidential Candidate Rajapaksa Dismissed on Common Law Immunity Grounds
Among other deficiencies, the ruling failed to acknowledge jurisprudence from other courts indicating that jus cogens violations can never constitute “official” acts entitling…

Sri Lankan War Criminal Gotabaya Rajapaksa May Escape Accountability Yet Again, This Time by Running for President
Recent developments in a pair of human rights cases in U.S. federal court against former Sri Lankan Defense Minister and current presidential hopeful Gotabaya (“Gota”) Rajapakse…

An Overview of International Humanitarian Law in France’s New Cyber Document
France's positions explained - with translations of key text - on important issues like the meaning of "attack" and the application of the principles of distinction and proportionality…

Do Moral Judgments of War Support the Principle of Combatant Equality?: What Empirical Studies Tells Us
Are our moral intuitions about war in line with the crucial principle of combatant equality in the law of armed conflict? A moral psychology study begins mapping out and explaining…

The Yemen Project: Open Source Investigations and the Law of War
An unprecedented open source investigation aids the legal analysis of allegedly unlawful strikes by the Saudi-led coalition, but also has limits in reaching legal conclusions under…