The Laws of War in the War on Terror
The laws of war - the parts of international law explicitly applicable in armed conflict - have a major bearing on the "war on terror" proclaimed and initiated by the US following the attacks of 11 September 2001. They address a range of critical issues that perennially arise in campaigns against terrorist movements, including discrimination in targeting, protection of civilians, and status and treatment of prisoners. The laws of war have a scope of application that is not limited to wars between recognized States. The nature of the opposition, point to potential problems in the application of the laws of war in counter-terrorist operations. Although the great majority of prisoners taken in war viewed as qualifying for prisoner-of-war (PoW) status, in a counter-terrorist war, as in other armed conflicts, there are likely individuals and even whole classes of prisoner who do not meet the treaty-defined criteria for such status. Keywords:armed conflicts; laws of war; prisoner-of-war (PoW); terrorist; war on terror
Administering the Territories: An Inquiry into the Application of International Humanitarian Law by the IDF in the Occupied Territories
This article seeks to evaluate Israel's implementation of the international law of occupation in the territories which it came to control after the Six-Day War, from a new perspective. Many scholars have criticized or justified specific Israeli policies by comparing them to specific norms of international law. Contrary to this scholarship, this article addresses the questions at the core of current debates over the implementation of international law: Why has Israel chosen to implement some specific rules of international law and to ignore others? And what caused the changes in Israel's implementation of international law? Some of the answers to these questions can be found by examining the interests of various institutions involved in the implementation of International law, and the interplay between them. I suggest that in order to understand Israel's initial behavior one must look at the interests, goals and culture of the Israeli army, the IDF, the institution initially responsible for administering the territories. I shall further argue that subsequent changes in policies are a result of the struggle between the IDF and other Israeli institutions attempting to gain influence over the way the territories were controlled.
Terrorism and the Law
with this threat to civilized order with all appropriate measures, ranging from diplomatic to military. One potential means for dealing with terrorism is law. Amer icans are particularly attracted to the law as a means for repressing violence, and are committed domestically and inter nationally to using law to control criminal conduct and to resolve disputes. They invoke the law almost instinctively, and repeatedly, assuming that it regulates international conduct and, in particular, provides a system for bringing terrorists to justice. Recent terrorist incidents have led to many efforts to use the law, virtually all of which have failed. The law has a poor record in dealing with international terrorism. Some terrorists are killed or captured during the course of their crimes, but few of those who evade these consequences are afterward found and arrested. The terrorist who is prosecuted is likely to be released far earlier than his sentence should require, often in exchange for hostages taken in a subsequent terrorist episode. The time has come to ask, frankly and honestly, why inter national terrorism is so loudly condemned, and yet so preva lent. What good is the law in fighting international terrorism? Why has it failed? II