War Crimes
439 Articles
Human Shields in Mosul
Daesh’s inhumanity seems to know no bounds. For its latest depravity, the group has forcibly expelled hundreds of civilians from nearby villages and forced them to serve as…
Letter to the Editor: Bombing Hospitals: Why Bad Actors—Not the Laws of War—Are to Blame
In “Military Attacks on ‘Hospital Shield: The Law Itself is Partly to Blame,” the authors address the dangers of analogizing between human shields and hospitals,…
If US and UK Have Joined the Fighting in Yemen, What’s Their Duty to Investigate Alleged Saudi War Crimes?
Air strike in Sana’a, May 2015. Image by Ibrahem Qasim – Wikimedia If the United States and United Kingdom (have) become not just supporters of the Saudi-led coalition…
Military Attacks on “Hospitals Shields”: The Law Itself is Partly to Blame
The MSF Trauma Center in Kunduz, Afghanistan, following the US airstrike on the facility in October 2015. Image by Andrew Quilty. From the war in Afghanistan and the US-backed…
International Armed Conflict in Syria and the (Lack of) Official Immunity for War Crimes
Last week, I wrote two posts at Just Security (here and here) on one of the legal consequences that would follow if the situation in Syria is an “international armed conflict”…
Turkey’s US-Backed Operation in Syria Has Created an International Armed Conflict
Defense Secretary Ash Carter meets with Turkish Defense Minister Fikri Işik during a U.N. Peacekeeping Ministerial meeting at Lancaster House in London, Sept. 8, 2016. DoD photo…
Full Text: Saudi-Led Coalition’s Statement of Explanation on Funeral Hall Bombing in Yemen
On Saturday, an investigation team with the Saudi-led coalition operations in Yemen released a statement explaining its findings of the reasons that led to the coalition’s…
How Retaking Mosul Could Spell Disaster for Civilians
After over two grueling years living under the control of the Islamic State (ISIS), Mosul’s 1.2 million civilians may suffer yet more abuse when the government tries to retake…
Letter to the Editor: Not So Fast on Calling it an “Armed Conflict” Between the US and Syria
In Tuesday’s provocative entry, “Is the United States Already in an ‘International Armed Conflict’ with Syria?,” Ryan Goodman states not only that the US is engaged…
If Burundi Leaves the Int’l Criminal Court, Can the Court Still Investigate Past Crimes There?
Last week, Burundi President Pierre Nkurunziza’s office announced that his country had begun taking steps to leave the International Criminal Court, of which it has been a member…
Why French President’s Threat of War Crimes Prosecutions against Russia, Syria Rings Hollow—But Needn’t
CNN is reporting that Russian President Vladimir Putin has canceled a visit to France next week following French President Francois Hollande’s statement that he would tell Putin…
Is the United States Already in an “International Armed Conflict” with Syria?
Many are debating whether the Obama administration should essentially go to war with Syria in an effort to halt the atrocities that Assad is committing in Aleppo and elsewhere…