Non-international Armed Conflict

Does the killing of Tren de Aragua's leader by the U.S. military in Venezuela constitute murder? An extrajudicial killing? What was its purported legal basis?

Armed conflict is not a matter of political branding, rhetorical convenience, or domestic law positioning. It is a legal status that turns on objective facts.

Expert authors examine key interpretive issues and selected topics in the updated Commentary on the Fourth Geneva Convention​ on protection of civilians during civil war.

Surveys how the 2025 ICRC GC IV Commentary integrates technology into its analysis of specific rules, while raising concerns about its treatment of data as property.

New Commentary on GC IV describes Article 23—the treaty’s key provision governing the duty to allow the passage of essentials to civilians—as "significantly diminished" today.

​The ICRC's updated Commentary on the Fourth Geneva Convention fills a loophole-closing function and reasserts international humanitarian law's core protective purpose.

Did the Sept. 2 strike on suspected drug traffickers using an unmarked aircraft violate the prohibition on perfidy, or other LOAC rules, had there been an armed conflict?

Expert FAQ on the U.S. military operations against Venezuela, high seas boat strikes, seizure of vessels and more.

Experts examine the international law basis of the U.S. boarding and seizure of a vessel carrying Venezuelan crude.

Detailing how, under different scenarios, international law and U.S. past practices apply to Sept. 2 boat strike on survivors.

A list of questions that should be answered by U.S. government officials regarding the lethal campaign against suspected drug trafficking individuals, groups, and vessels.

The two determinations are mutually exclusive; it is legally impossible to maintain both simultaneously.