23 results on '"law of armed conflict"'
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2. Protecting Warfighters from Superfluous Injury and Unnecessary Suffering
- Author
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Rain Liivoja
- Subjects
Law of armed conflict ,media_common.quotation_subject ,LawArXiv|Law|International Humanitarian Law ,ComputerApplications_COMPUTERSINOTHERSYSTEMS ,LawArXiv|Law ,bepress|Law ,LawArXiv|Law|International Law ,Protocol I ,Human enhancement ,Political science ,Reading (process) ,bepress|Law|International Law ,bepress|Law|International Humanitarian Law ,Meaning (existential) ,Law and economics ,media_common - Abstract
[Law and the Future of War Research Paper No 4] This paper considers one of most fundamental of rules of the law of armed conflict on the means and methods of warfare, which has been captured in Article 35(2) of Additional Protocol I in the following language: ‘It is prohibited to employ weapons, projectiles and material and methods of warfare of a nature to cause superfluous injury or unnecessary suffering.’ The exclusive focus of this unnecessary suffering rule on the wellbeing of combatants arguably makes it exceptional in the fabric of the law of armed conflict. And the fierce agreement about the foundational nature of this rule is only matched by the disagreement as to its precise meaning and efficacy. This paper considers the origins of the rule, and how key aspects of the rule are interpreted. It then deals with one of the more contentious issues – namely whether the rule is only concerned with the inherent properties of particular weapons or whether it also deals with the use of weapons. The paper suggest, with particular reference to human enhancement, that a better reading of the rule would indeed capture the uses of weapons. The use of a weapon with a knowledge that it would cause superfluous injury or unnecessary suffering in the circumstances ought to be regarded as prohibited by the rule. more...
- Published
- 2020
- Full Text
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3. When Conflict Recurs: Classification of Conflict When Hostilities Break Out Anew
- Author
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Laurie R. Blank
- Subjects
Law of armed conflict ,Identification (information) ,Lower threshold ,Political science ,Face (sociological concept) ,Context (language use) ,International humanitarian law ,Test (assessment) ,Law and economics ,Potential conflict - Abstract
Conflict classification — including identifying when conflict ends — is essential for determining the application of the law of armed conflict and the concomitant protections for persons and obligations of the parties to the conflict or potential conflict. What happens, however, when a conflict ends or appears to end but then violence and hostilities bubble up again? The complexity of conflict identification and classification and the challenges of understanding and analyzing the facts and actors in such new rounds of violence raise interesting and often difficult questions regarding the appropriate approach in assessing whether such new violence constitutes an armed conflict and when. This chapter analyzes the appropriate analytical tools and thresholds for identifying the existence of and characterizing conflict in the face of a resurgence of hostilities. For conflicts between two states, the threshold for such international armed conflict is quite low, such that it could be hard to envision a quicker identification of armed conflict when violence recurs in the aftermath of an inter-state conflict. However, such scenarios pose challenging questions of whether actions by a proxy group or other entity could constitute an international armed conflict and, if so, whether the threshold or standard for such determination might be easier to satisfy if a recent conflict between the two states forms the backdrop for that analysis. In the context of non-international armed conflicts, one overarching question is whether the now-classical Tadic test with the factors of intensity and organization is the right approach in such situations of violence recurring after conflict, or whether some lower threshold or “accelerated analysis” could be more appropriate in these situations. Similarly, the nature of the armed group engaged in the resurgence of hostilities may be consequential, such that the thresholds or framework for hostilities recurring with the same group may not be the same as that for new or reconstituted groups, as well as the location and nature of the conflict. After a brief discussion of the basis for this inquiry and an introduction to the basic legal framework for identification and classification of armed conflict in the first section, the second section explores how the specific problem of violence recurring after the end of armed conflict poses interesting and challenging questions for the conflict classification schematic. more...
- Published
- 2020
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4. The (Erroneous) Requirement for Human Judgment (and Error) in the Law of Armed Conflict
- Author
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Eric Talbot Jensen
- Subjects
Convention ,Law of armed conflict ,Emerging technologies ,Political science ,Law of war ,International community ,International law ,International humanitarian law ,Compliance (psychology) ,Law and economics - Abstract
One of the most intriguing and important discussions in international law today is the potential impact of emerging technologies on the law of armed conflict (LOAC), including weapons that incorporate machine learning and/or artificial intelligence. Because one of the likely characteristics of these advanced weapons would be the ability to make decisions implicating life and death on the battlefield, these discussions have highlighted a fundamental question concerning the LOAC: does the law regulating armed conflict require human input in selecting and engaging targets or can that decision be made without human input? This article analyzes views expressed by scholars and NGOs, but focuses on views expressed by States, many of which have been publicized as part of the discussions of States Parties to the Certain Conventional Weapons Convention. As a result of this analysis, It is clear that States have not yet come to a consensus on the issue of the legal role of human decision making in LOAC compliance. Given that lack of consensus, one can only conclude that the law does not currently require a human decision for selecting and engaging targets to be lawful. Though the international community may come to such a decision, it has not yet done so. Therefore, States should continue to research and develop weapons that incorporate machine learning and artificial intelligence because such weapons offer the promise of not only greater compliance with existing norms and processes, but also increased opportunities to provide protections in new and creative ways in the future. more...
- Published
- 2020
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5. Five Legal Takeaways from the Syrian War
- Author
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Shane R. Reeves and Ronald T.P. Alcala
- Subjects
Law of armed conflict ,Action (philosophy) ,Emerging technologies ,Political science ,Law ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Jus ad bellum ,Conversation ,International humanitarian law ,media_common - Abstract
The U.S. Army regularly uses after action reports (AAR) to record observations and capture lessons learned from military operations. While not strictly an AAR, the following list of five takeaways is intended to memorialize some of the legal trends that arose during the military campaigns in Syria and Iraq. Our hope is that this admittedly non-exhaustive list will stimulate a broader conversation about the legal consequences of the Syrian War. more...
- Published
- 2019
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6. PARTICIPATION AUX COMBATS DE NOUVEAUX ACTEURS (New Actors on the Battlefield)
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T.M.C. Asser Submitter and Rebecca Mignot-Mahdavi
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Law of armed conflict ,Battlefield ,Humanitarian aid ,business.industry ,Political science ,Humanitarian action ,business ,Humanities ,International humanitarian law - Abstract
French Abstract: L’action humanitaire est mise au defi de s’adapter et de trouver ses modalites de fonctionnement face a l’apparition ou a l’accroissement de la participation aux combats de certains acteurs sur le theâtre des hostilites. Definissant le concept d’acteurs comme comprenant aussi bien entites humaines et non-humaines, cette contribution explore les consequences de la presence croissante de societes militaires privees, d’une part, et des drones de combat, d’autre part, sur la delivrance de l’aide humanitaire sur le terrain. Elle montre comment et a quel point la presence de ces acteurs, la conduite de la guerre et les categories juridiques interagissent et se remodelent entre elles. Il est suggere que cette relation dialectique affecte la delivrance de l’aide humanitaire. De la confusion des fonctions et statuts juridiques creee par le recours accru aux SMP aux fonctions hybrides, jusqu’a l’utilisation des drones de telle maniere que les acteurs humanitaires hesitent a delivrer leur aide, mais aussi de telle maniere que des dommages aux civils de nouvelle nature emergent (appelant une aide humanitaire, elle aussi, de nature nouvelle) cette contribution scrute deux types de problemes contemporains auxquels l’aide humanitaire doit faire face. English Abstract: Humanitarian action is challenged by the emergence and increased presence of new actors on the battlefield. Considering actors as including both human and non-human entities, this contribution explores the different impacts that increased presence of private military companies (PMCs) on the one hand, and combat drones on the other hand, have on the delivery of humanitarian action. The contribution shows how and to what extent the presence of these actors, the conduct of warfare and legal categories reshape one another. I argue that this dialectical relationship and intertwined phenomena have implications for humanitarian action delivery. From the confusion of functions and legal status created by the increased recourse to hybrid PMCs, to the use of drones in such ways that humanitarian actors refrain from delivering their assistance, but also in such ways that new types of civilian harms emerge, calling for humanitarian aid of different nature, this contribution thus scrutinizes two sets of contemporary problems that humanitarian action has to face. more...
- Published
- 2019
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7. Autonomous Weapons: How Existing Law Can Regulate Future Weapons
- Author
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Charles P Trumbull
- Subjects
Law of armed conflict ,Transformative learning ,Action (philosophy) ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Political science ,Accountability ,Armed conflict ,Engineering ethics ,Human judgment ,Autonomy ,International humanitarian law ,media_common - Abstract
This Article examines the rise of autonomous weapons systems (AWS), their transformative effect on warfare, and the novel and difficult challenges that autonomy will pose to current interpretations and applications of international humanitarian law (IHL), the legal framework applicable in armed conflict. Autonomous weapons will profoundly affect humans’ role in warfare. AWS will be able to make certain decisions that have traditionally been made exclusively by humans. They will also affect how humans exercise judgment over uses of force as commanders are further removed (temporally and geographically) from the point of kinetic action. At the same time, human judgment cannot be excised from warfare and must remain the focus of IHL. This Article analyzes that tension and the critical need to reconcile IHL’s focus on human decision-making with autonomous technology. This Article provides the first comprehensive analysis of how fundamental principles of IHL can and should be applied in light of rapidly changing advances in warfare and their correlated humanitarian risks. In particular, it critically assesses how IHL rules regarding weapons development, targeting, and accountability can be applied (and the interpretive challenges we confront in doing so) with respect to the use of AWS in armed conflict. more...
- Published
- 2019
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8. Proportionality Under International Humanitarian Law (IHL): The Reasonable Military Commanderr Standard and Reverberating Effects
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Ian Henderson and Kate Reece
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Law of armed conflict ,Harm ,Key terms ,Collateral ,Political science ,Collateral damage ,Proportionality (law) ,International humanitarian law ,Law and economics - Abstract
The principle of proportionality protects civilians and civilian objects against expected incidental harm from an attack that is excessive to the military advantage anticipated from the attack. However, despite its status as a fundamental norm of IHL, key terms are not defined in relevant treaties nor benefit from critical judicial explanation. This has caused challenges for both academics and military commanders alike in explaining and applying the test for proportionality. The article expands upon two points that were raised and generated interesting discussion at The Second Israel Defense Forces International Conference on the Law of Armed Conflict during a panel that dealt with contemporary issues in proportionality. Those two issues are: a. What does the “reasonable military commander” standard for assessing proportionality entail? b. Should “reverberating effects” (i.e., collateral effects that are only expected to materialize in the long term) be accounted for as part of the assessment of collateral damage? more...
- Published
- 2018
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9. Cracking Attribution: Moving International Norms Forward
- Author
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Joshua Lefebvre
- Subjects
Sliding scale ,Law of armed conflict ,Cracking ,Political science ,International law ,Attribution ,Cyberspace ,State responsibility ,Hacker ,Law and economics - Published
- 2018
- Full Text
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10. LLAttaque Directe DDEnfants-Soldats En Droit International Humanitaire: Exppriences Et RRflexions Canadiennes (Direct Targeting of Child Soldiers: Canadian Experiences and Approaches)
- Author
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René Provost
- Subjects
Law of armed conflict ,Direct targeting ,Political science ,Humanities ,International humanitarian law - Abstract
French Abstract: Le fait que des enfants se joignent aux forces armees ou a des groupes armes non-etatiques est une terrible realite qui resiste aux efforts de la communaute internationale pour l’eliminer. La participation directe aux hostilites par des enfants-soldats constitue possiblement l’aspect le plus troublant de cette realite, en ce qu’elle souleve la possibilite de devoir attaquer directement ces enfants. Le droit international humanitaire reste a ce jour plutot discret quant a cette facette de la participation des enfants aux conflits armes, laissant les forces armees improviser leur reaction. Les Forces armees canadiennes ont adopte en 2017 ce qui est presente comme la premiere doctrine militaire sur les enfants-soldats. Le present texte propose une analyse de cette doctrine a la lumiere de la reglementation de l’emploi de la force contre les enfants-soldats en droit international humanitaire, pour determiner si les enfants peuvent jamais devenir des combattants a part entiere, a quelles conditions ils peuvent participer directement aux hostilites, et quelles limites le droit humanitaire impose quant aux choix des moyens et mesures de guerre employes. English Abstract: The fact that children are drawn to join the ranks of armed forces or non-state armed groups is a terrible reality that persists despite concerted efforts to eradicate the practice. No facet of this reality is perhaps more shocking than children’s direct participation in hostility, in that it raises the specter of combatants directly targeting children. International humanitarian law doctrine had been largely silent on this specific aspect of child soldiering, leaving the military to improvise its stance when confronted with child soldiers. The Canadian Armed Forces in 2017 adopted what is said to be the first official doctrine on child soldiers. This paper analyses this doctrine in light of the regulation of the use of force against child-soldiers under International humanitarian law. It assesses whether children can ever be full-fledge combatants, when they can be considered civilians directly participating in hostilities and, if children can be directly targeted, what limits humanitarian law imposes on means and measures of war employed. more...
- Published
- 2017
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11. Autonomous Weapons: Regulation Tolerant or Regulation Resistant?
- Author
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Sean Watts
- Subjects
Balance (metaphysics) ,Law of armed conflict ,Engineering ,business.industry ,fungi ,Law of war ,Resistance (psychoanalysis) ,social sciences ,humanities ,Law ,population characteristics ,business ,International humanitarian law ,Law and economics - Abstract
This paper applies the author's previously published model for evaluating weapons' susceptibility to attempts to generate international regulations on autonomous weapons. The paper concludes that while autonomous weapon systems presently demonstrate characteristics of both regulation tolerance and resistance, on balance, considerations of resistance, especially uncertainty as to effectiveness prevail and indicate a low likelihood that States will in the immediate future consent to a meaningfully-ratified specific regulation or a preemptive ban. more...
- Published
- 2015
- Full Text
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12. Measuring Autonomous Weapon Systems Against International Humanitarian Law Rules
- Author
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Thompson Chengeta
- Subjects
Law of armed conflict ,Engineering ,business.industry ,Armed conflict ,Proportionality (law) ,Globe ,International law ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Military necessity ,Law ,Humanity ,medicine ,business ,International humanitarian law - Abstract
Across the globe, the debate on AWS has focused more on the ramifications of AWS on International Humanitarian Law than on other branches of international law. This is so because the general expectation is that AWS will be deployed in the context of armed conflict; thus International Humanitarian Law being the applicable regime. To this end, scholars have grappled with the question whether AWS are capable of complying with important and customary IHL rules of humanity, military necessity, distinction, proportionality and precaution. This is an important question because to many people it may be that the acceptability or otherwise of this technology depends on AWS’ capability to comply with the aforementioned rules – at least in the context of armed conflict. This, however, is not to forget the argument that IHL rules to be discussed below were meant to be applied by human combatants not by autonomous robots. more...
- Published
- 2015
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13. The Equilibrium of Violence: Accountability in the Age of Autonomous Weapons Systems
- Author
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Joel William Hood
- Subjects
Law of armed conflict ,Product (business) ,Law ,World War II ,Control (management) ,Accountability ,Economics ,Economic market ,Productivity ,Law and economics - Abstract
The law of armed conflict (LOAC) has fundamentally transformed since the Hague Conferences. Indeed, many critics of autonomous weapons systems discuss new technology as if AP I, art. 36 and a host of other provisions do not exist or are not being enforced among developed nations. This paper frames the issue of LOAC and autonomous weapons systems as an economic market - a market of violence. Intuitively, the emergence of new technology improves productivity and results in lower costs and higher quantity produced. However, states are producers and their product is violence. Thus, technology has the potential to distort the economy of violence that is artificially maintained at an equilibrium point as determined by the LOAC. The paper concludes that the LOAC has developed and matured beyond the rudimentary stages that allowed abuses during WWI and WWII, that AP I, art. 36 acts as a tax on future weapons systems to maintain the equilibrium of violence at acceptable levels, and that if states wish to further control the spigot of technology, so to speak, they ought to impose additional "taxes" or costs on development in the form of accountability measures on attorneys and developers of autonomous weapons systems. more...
- Published
- 2014
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14. Under Siege: International Humanitarian Law and Security Council Practice Concerning Urban Siege Operations
- Author
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Sean Watts
- Subjects
Siege ,Law of armed conflict ,Politics ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Political science ,Law ,Armed conflict ,Law of war ,Patience ,Security council ,International humanitarian law ,media_common - Abstract
This paper demonstrates that while siege operations, as traditionally practiced, are not technically prohibited, they are now significantly limited by IHL in both international armed conflict and non-international armed conflict, and that international political opinion seems to have increasingly little patience, at least in connection to some contexts, for the human suffering and deprivation involved in urban sieges. more...
- Published
- 2014
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15. Policy Guidance: Autonomy in Defence Systems
- Author
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Artur Kuptel and Andrew Williams
- Subjects
Law of armed conflict ,Engineering ,Government ,business.industry ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Law of war ,Computer security ,computer.software_genre ,Drone ,Procurement ,Key (cryptography) ,Engineering ethics ,business ,computer ,Autonomy ,International humanitarian law ,media_common - Abstract
Drawing from the findings of a collaborative project between several nations and NATO Allied Command Transformation, this document offers policy guidance to senior leadership in government defence organisations, industry, and academia. The guidance aims to facilitate planning and preparation for the design, procurement and operation of systems with autonomous capabilities, and to realise the impressive benefits while avoiding potential challenges. The document covers the implications of the definitions for autonomous systems; key legal issues regarding weaponized systems with autonomous capability; ethical, human factors and military concerns; and gives guidance for future research and capability development. more...
- Published
- 2014
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16. Cyber Attacks in the Post 9/11 Era: Perspectives on the Non-State Actors and Transnational Armed Conflicts
- Author
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Pritam Ghosh
- Subjects
Law of armed conflict ,State (polity) ,Contemporary history ,Political science ,Political economy ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Law ,Armed conflict ,Cyber-attack ,International community ,Context (language use) ,media_common - Abstract
The 9/11 incident has changed the way as to how the world looks at cyber conflicts in the contemporary era. The paradigmatic shift due to the increased involvement of non-state actors has pushed the international community towards the belief that the substantive laws governing cyber attacks require significant amendments. In this context, the author argues that a third category of armed conflict, namely ‘transnational armed conflict’ has emerged and the laws of war as well as those related to it like international and transnational criminal laws need to recognize it and mould themselves accordingly. more...
- Published
- 2013
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17. Autonomous Decision-Making Processes and the Responsible Cyber Commander
- Author
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Jody M. Prescott
- Subjects
Law of armed conflict ,Computer science ,media_common.quotation_subject ,ComputerApplications_COMPUTERSINOTHERSYSTEMS ,Computer security ,computer.software_genre ,Rules of engagement ,Cyberwarfare ,Time frame ,Cyber operations ,Light speed ,Architecture ,Function (engineering) ,computer ,media_common - Abstract
With cyber operations conceivably moving at near light speed, commanders in cyber warfare will likely need to rely extensively upon autonomous decision-making processes (ADPs) to be effective. For commanders to meet their obligations under the Law of Armed Conflict (LOAC) and complementary Rules of Engagement (ROE), these ADPs must function in a manner compliant with both. To better understand how such ADPs might be effectively used, it is important to consider the operational challenges cyber commanders face in conducting cyber warfare, the different options available to cyber commanders to decrease the time frame required for making effective, LOAC-compliant decisions, and how ethical ADPs might be created. To that end, this paper focuses on the development of programme architecture and procedures that will be necessary to meet LOAC and ROE requirements, rather than the applicable law or potential ROE. more...
- Published
- 2013
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
18. Extraterritorial Lethal Targeting: Deconstructing the Logic of International Law
- Author
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Michael N. Schmitt
- Subjects
Law of armed conflict ,Law ,Political science ,education ,International law ,Principle of legality ,Self defense ,humanities ,health care economics and organizations ,Use of force - Abstract
This article sets for a framework for examining the legality of extraterritorial lethal strikes ("targeted killings") in international law.
- Published
- 2013
- Full Text
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19. Cyber Attacks: Proportionality and Precautions in Attack
- Author
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Eric Talbot Jensen
- Subjects
Law of armed conflict ,Cyberwarfare ,Armed conflict ,Proportionality (law) ,Law of war ,Business ,International law ,Computer security ,computer.software_genre ,Speculation ,computer ,Tallinn Manual - Abstract
Malicious cyber activities are becoming more and more commonplace, including between nations. This has caused great speculation as to the rules that govern military cyber operations, particularly during armed conflict. The upcoming publication of the Tallinn Manual on the International Law Applicable to Cyber Warfare is indicative of the importance of this discussion. This article analyzes the application of the law of armed conflict principles of proportionality and precautions to cyber operations, including reference to the Tallinn Manual. In most cases, the existing law provides a clear paradigm to govern cyber activities. However, this article identifies several areas where governments and military operators might question how to apply these principles to a specific cyber operation. In these areas, greater precision is needed to provide clear guidance to those who plan, order, and conduct cyber operations. more...
- Published
- 2012
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20. Challenges of Twenty-First Century Conflicts: A Look at Direct Participation in Hostilities
- Author
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Jamie Williamson
- Subjects
Law of armed conflict ,Law ,Political science ,Twenty-First Century ,Armed conflict ,Face (sociological concept) ,Direct participation ,International humanitarian law ,Military medicine - Abstract
In recent times, armed conflicts have given rise to new challenges and to new humanitarian concerns. The realities of modern day armed conflicts have also fueled the debate as to the adequacy of International humanitarian law in the face of an evolving tapestry of conflict. This paper considers some of these challenges, including the concept of direct participation in hostilities. more...
- Published
- 2010
- Full Text
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21. Characterization of Conflict: The Case of Iraq
- Author
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Michael N. Schmitt
- Subjects
Law of armed conflict ,Law ,Political science ,Armed conflict ,Law of war ,Belligerent ,Military medicine - Abstract
The draft piece looks at the changing chracterization of the conflict in Iraq from inception of hostilities: international armed conflict, belligerent occupation, and non-international armed conflict. more...
- Published
- 2010
- Full Text
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22. The Development of NATO EBAO Doctrine: Clausewitz's Theories and the Role of Law in an Evolving Approach to Operations
- Author
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Jody Mailand Prescott
- Subjects
Law of armed conflict ,Development (topology) ,Alliance ,Work (electrical) ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Law ,Doctrine ,Context (language use) ,Sociology ,International law ,media_common - Abstract
As NATO seeks to further its application of the Comprehensive Approach to alliance operations, there is a lack of doctrine necessary for understanding the military component of the Comprehensive Approach. Despite the characterization of Clausewitz's work by some as being dismissive of the role of law in operations, review of his writings in the context of legal thought at the time shows that instead Clausewitz had a highly developed appreciation of law's significance, and that his views were largely in keeping with the main body of international law thinking at the time. Accordingly, his work is therefore suitable to serve as part of a theoretical basis for the development of doctrine that would support the Comprehensive Approach. more...
- Published
- 2008
- Full Text
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23. The Principle of Discrimination in 21st Century Warfare
- Author
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Michael N. Schmitt
- Subjects
Law of armed conflict ,Political science ,Law ,International humanitarian law - Abstract
Examines the impact of changes in the nature of warfare, including technological advancements, on the international humanitarian law principle of discrimination.
- Published
- 1999
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
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