Cyberweapons

2021 ◽  
pp. 172-186
Author(s):  
Sandro Gaycken
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Arms Control ◽  
Precise Definition ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Important Research ◽  
Research Gaps ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Human Shield ◽  
Military Units

This chapter explains tactical offensive cyberoperations to derive a precise definition of cyberweapons. The definition will be used to explore implementable options for cyber arms control and functional cyber norms, it will help to delineate important research gaps and red lines and to identify novel options for an application of international humanitarian law to strategic cyberwarfare, such as an application of the human shield rule to ban commercial information technology from military units.

Determining the beginning and end of an occupation under international humanitarian law

2012 ◽  
Vol 94 (885) ◽  
pp. 133-163 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tristan Ferraro
Keyword(s):  
Precise Definition ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Legal Test ◽  
Definition Of

AbstractInternational humanitarian law (IHL) does not provide a precise definition of the notion of occupation, nor does it propose clear-cut standards for determining when an occupation starts and when its ends. This article analyses in detail the notion of occupation under IHL and its constitutive elements, and sets out a legal test for identifying when a situation qualifies as an occupation for the purposes of IHL. It concludes by suggesting an adjustment of the legal test to the specific characteristics of occupation by proxy and occupation by multinational forces.

scholarly journals International law protecting the environment during armed conflict: gaps and opportunities

2010 ◽  
Vol 92 (879) ◽  
pp. 569-592 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Bothe ◽  
Carl Bruch ◽  
Jordan Diamond ◽  
David Jensen
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Environmental Law ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Environmental Damage ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
International Environmental Law ◽  
Basic Principles ◽  
Principle Of Proportionality ◽  
Definition Of

AbstractThere are three key deficiencies in the existing body of international humanitarian law (IHL) relating to protection of the environment during armed conflict. First, the definition of impermissible environmental damage is both too restrictive and unclear; second, there are legal uncertainties regarding the protection of elements of the environment as civilian objects; and third, the application of the principle of proportionality where harm to the environment constitutes ‘collateral damage’ is also problematic. These gaps present specific opportunities for clarifying and developing the existing framework. One approach to addressing some of the inadequacies of IHL could be application of international environmental law during armed conflict. The detailed norms, standards, approaches, and mechanisms found in international environmental law might also help to clarify and extend basic principles of IHL to prevent, address, or assess liability for environmental damage incurred during armed conflict.

scholarly journals The redirection of attacks by defending forces

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Tsvetelina van Benthem
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Prima Facie ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Human Rights Law ◽  
Law Of Armed Conflict ◽  
The Law ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract This article examines the redirection of incoming missiles when employed by defending forces to whom obligations to take precautions against the effects of attacks apply. The analysis proceeds in four steps. In the first step, the possibility of redirection is examined from an empirical standpoint. Step two defines the contours of the obligation to take precautions against the effects of attacks. Step three considers one variant of redirection, where a missile is redirected back towards the adversary. It is argued that such acts of redirection would fulfil the definition of attack under the law of armed conflict, and that prima facie conflicts of obligations could be avoided through interpretation of the feasibility standard embedded in the obligation to take precautions against the effects of attacks. Finally, step four analyzes acts of redirection against persons under the control of the redirecting State. Analyzing this scenario calls for an inquiry into the relationship between the relevant obligations under international humanitarian law and human rights law.

scholarly journals Military Objectives 2.0: The Case for Interpreting Computer Data as Objects under International Humanitarian Law

2015 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-80 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kubo Mačák
Keyword(s):  
Customary Law ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Cyber Warfare ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Military Operations ◽  
Computer Data ◽  
Proper Understanding ◽  
Military Objective ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Teleological Interpretation

This article presents the case for a progressive interpretation of the notion of military objectives in international humanitarian law (IHL), bringing computer data within the scope of this concept. The advent of cyber military operations has presented a dilemma as to the proper understanding of data in IHL. The emerging orthodoxy, represented by the 2013Tallinn Manual on the International Law Applicable to Cyber Warfare, advances the argument that the intangible nature of data renders it ineligible to be an object for the purposes of the rules on targeting in IHL. This article, on the contrary, argues that because of its susceptibility to alteration and destruction, the better view is that data is an object within the meaning of this term under IHL and thus it may qualify as a military objective. The article supports this conclusion by means of a textual, systematic and teleological interpretation of the definition of military objectives found in treaty and customary law. The upshot of the analysis presented here is that data that does not meet the criteria for qualification as a military objective must be considered a civilian object, with profound implications for the protection of civilian datasets in times of armed conflict.

Typology of armed conflicts in international humanitarian law: legal concepts and actual situations

2009 ◽  
Vol 91 (873) ◽  
pp. 69-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sylvain Vité
Keyword(s):  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Legal Practice ◽  
Legal Regime ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Legal Concepts

AbstractAlthough international humanitarian law has as its aim the limitation of the effects of armed conflict, it does not include a full definition of those situations which fall within its material field of application. While it is true that the relevant conventions refer to various types of armed conflict and therefore afford a glimpse of the legal outlines of this multifaceted concept, these instruments do not propose criteria that are precise enough to determine the content of those categories unequivocally. A certain amount of clarity is nonetheless needed. In fact, depending on how the situations are legally defined, the rules that apply vary from one case to the next. By proposing a typology of armed conflicts from the perspective of international humanitarian law, this article seeks to show how the different categories of armed conflict anticipated by that legal regime can be interpreted in the light of recent developments in international legal practice. It also reviews some actual situations whose categorization under existing legal concepts has been debated.

International Humanitarian Law and Arms Control

1988 ◽  
Vol 28 (267) ◽  
pp. 491-504 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Frei
Keyword(s):  
Arms Control ◽  
Red Cross ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Chemical Weapon ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Public Attention ◽  
Nuclear Arms Control ◽  
Self Examination ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Proper Consideration

For almost two decades, the International Red Cross Movement has been engaged in a continuing process of self-examination regarding its contribution to peace and disarmament. At the same time, public attention is being focused on, and sometimes even captivated by, various bilateral and multilateral efforts to achieve progress in nuclear and non-nuclear arms control in fields such as the reduction of strategic and intermediate-range nuclear weapons, nuclear and chemical weapon-free zones, confidence- and security-building measures, and so on. The two lines of action are usually dealt with individually without proper consideration of the manifold interconnections existing between them. Only recently have efforts been made to clarify the relationship between the two. The purpose of this article is to bring them together and to do so by asking the question: To what extent can the effort to promote and implement international humanitarian law be seen as a contribution in terms of arms control?

"The Most Moral Army in the World": The New "Ethical Code" of the Israeli Military and The War on Gaza

2010 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 6-23
Author(s):  
Muhammad Ali Khalidi
Keyword(s):  
Ethical Code ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Direct Role ◽  
Military Commanders ◽  
The World ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Israeli Army ◽  
Morality Of War

This article examines the content of and justification for a new "ethical code" designed for the Israeli army to take into account the "fight against terror. " It argues that the code contains two innovations: it includes acts aimed exclusively at military targets in its definition of "terrorism," and it contains a principle of distinction that prioritizes the lives of citizen combatants over those of noncitizen noncombatants, contrary to centuries of theorizing about the morality of war as well as international humanitarian law. The article suggests that the principle of distinction played a direct role in Israel's offensive in Gaza in winter 2008––2009, as demonstrated by a preponderance of testimony indicating that Israeli military commanders explicitly instructed soldiers to give priority to their own lives over those of Palestinian noncombatants.

Ambivalent Humanitarian Crises and Complex Emergencies

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dennis Dijkzeul ◽  
Diana Griesinger
Keyword(s):  
Academic Disciplines ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Crisis ◽  
Fine Grained ◽  
Humanitarian Action ◽  
Humanitarian Crises ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Local Actors ◽  
Definition Of

The term “humanitarian crisis” combines two words of controversial meaning and definitions that are often used in very different situations. For example, there is no official definition of “humanitarian crisis” in international humanitarian law. Although some academic disciplines have developed ways of collecting and analyzing data on (potential) crises, all of them have difficulties understanding, defining, and even identifying humanitarian crises. Following an overview of the use of the compound noun “humanitarian crisis,” three perspectives from respectively the disciplines International Humanitarian Law, Public Health, and Humanitarian Studies are discussed in order to explore their different but partly overlapping approaches to (incompletely) defining, representing, and negotiating humanitarian crises. These disciplinary perspectives often paint an incomplete and technocratic picture of crises that is rarely contextualized and, thus, fails to reflect adequately the political causes of crises and the roles of local actors. They center more on defining humanitarian action than on humanitarian crises. They also show four different types of humanitarian action, namely radical, traditional Dunantist, multimandate, and resilience humanitarianism. These humanitarianisms have different strengths and weaknesses in different types of crisis, but none comprehensively and successfully defines humanitarian crises. Finally, a multiperspective and power-sensitive definition of crises, and a more fine-grained language for comprehending the diversity of crises will do more justice to the complexity and longevity of crises and the persons who are surviving—or attempting to survive—them.

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