The Middle East’s Next War Joschka Fischer Joschka Fischer was German Foreign Minister and Vice Chancellor from 1998-2005, a term marked by Germany’s strong support for NATO’s intervention in Kosovo in 1999, followed by its opposition to the war in Iraq. Fischer entered electoral politics after participating in the anti-establishment …
Leer »The Right of Self-Defence Against Imminent Armed Attack In International Law
The Right of Self-Defence Against Imminent Armed Attack In International Law On 11 April 2017, the Australian Attorney-General, Senator the Hon. George Brandis QC, delivered a public lecture on “The Right of Self-Defence Against Imminent Armed Attack In International Law”, at the T C Beirne School of Law, University of …
Leer »Forcible Humanitarian Action in International Law
Forcible Humanitarian Action in International Law There is a widespread myth amongst international lawyers. This is the apparently unshakeable proposition that forcible humanitarian action is clearly unlawful. Any changes to that proposition would be impossible, given: The preponderance of the doctrine of sovereignty over countervailing considerations, such as human rights; …
Leer »States Are Failing Us in Syria — Not International Law
States Are Failing Us in Syria — Not International Law by Kevin Jon Heller by Kevin Jon Heller Last month, Just Security published a long and thoughtful post by Rebecca Ingber with the provocative title “International Law is Failing Us in Syria.” The international law she is talking about is the …
Leer »The Precedent Set by the US Reprisal Against the Use of Chemical Weapons in Syria
The Precedent Set by the US Reprisal Against the Use of Chemical Weapons in Syria In his recent post on the United States’ missile strike against a Syrian airbase, on 6 April 2017, Marko Milanovic focused primarily on the unlawfulness of that action (here). While I agree with that view, …
Leer »The Legality Surrounding the US Strikes in Syria
The Legality Surrounding the US Strikes in Syria by Nancy Simons [Nancy Simons is a Belgian lawyer and serves on the International Bar Association’s Drones Task Force. Her professional background lies in international law generally. She has worked at a number of international non-governmental organisations and the International Criminal Tribunal …
Leer »United States’ Missile Strikes in Syria: Should International Law Permit Unilateral Force to Protect Human Rights?
United States’ Missile Strikes in Syria: Should International Law Permit Unilateral Force to Protect Human Rights? A bounty of recent blog posts have poured over the legality of the Trump administration’s missile strikes against a Syrian airbase in response to President Bashar al-Assad’s use of chemical weapons (see, e.g, here, …
Leer »Two Visions of the UN Charter
Two Visions of the UN Charter by Jens David Ohlin As I write this, the ASIL annual meeting is conducting a well-timed, previously unannounced panel discussion about the legality of the missile strikes against Assad’s airbase in Syria. In addition to Harold Koh (Yale Law School), who has argued in support …
Leer »War by Any Other Name? It’s Still War
War by Any Other Name? It’s Still War by Gabor Rona and Jocelyn Getgen Kestenbaum [Gabor Rona is a Visiting Professor of Law and Director of the Law and Armed Conflict Project at Cardozo Law School. Jocelyn Getgen Kestenbaum is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the Cardozo Law Institute in Holocaust and Human …
Leer »US Strikes against Syria and the Implications for the Jus ad Bellum
US Strikes against Syria and the Implications for the Jus ad Bellum The blogosphere is abuzz with reactions to the U.S. strikes against Syria. My guess is that most international lawyers will agree with Marko Milanovic that the strikes were unlawful. Article 2(4) of the Charter prohibits the use of …
Leer »The Clearly Illegal US Missile Strike in Syria
The Clearly Illegal US Missile Strike in Syria Yesterday, the United States launched a missile strike against an airbase of the Syrian armed forces, in response to the recent chemical attack that the US claims was launched from this airbase. This is the first time that the US has directly …
Leer »North Korea and the Law on Anticipatory Self-Defense
North Korea and the Law on Anticipatory Self-Defense Media reports over the last few weeks indicate that the already tense relationship between North Korea and the United States is getting worse. Now that North Korea is nearly ready to test an intercontinental ballistic missile, the United States has said that …
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