Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Foreword
- Preface
- Acknowledgments
- Table of treaties
- Table of MOUs
- Table of cases
- Glossary of legal terms
- List of abbreviations
- 1 International law
- 2 States and recognition
- 3 Territory
- 4 Jurisdiction
- 5 The law of treaties
- 6 Diplomatic privileges and immunities
- 7 State immunity
- 8 Nationality, aliens and refugees
- 9 International organisations
- 10 The United Nations, including the use of force
- 11 Human rights
- 12 The law of armed conflict (international humanitarian law)
- 13 International criminal law
- 14 Terrorism
- 15 The law of the sea
- 16 International environmental law
- 17 International civil aviation
- 18 Special regimes
- 19 International economic law
- 20 Succession of states
- 21 State responsibility
- 22 Settlement of disputes
- 23 The European Union
- Index
12 - The law of armed conflict (international humanitarian law)
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 August 2012
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Foreword
- Preface
- Acknowledgments
- Table of treaties
- Table of MOUs
- Table of cases
- Glossary of legal terms
- List of abbreviations
- 1 International law
- 2 States and recognition
- 3 Territory
- 4 Jurisdiction
- 5 The law of treaties
- 6 Diplomatic privileges and immunities
- 7 State immunity
- 8 Nationality, aliens and refugees
- 9 International organisations
- 10 The United Nations, including the use of force
- 11 Human rights
- 12 The law of armed conflict (international humanitarian law)
- 13 International criminal law
- 14 Terrorism
- 15 The law of the sea
- 16 International environmental law
- 17 International civil aviation
- 18 Special regimes
- 19 International economic law
- 20 Succession of states
- 21 State responsibility
- 22 Settlement of disputes
- 23 The European Union
- Index
Summary
Then every soldier kill his prisoners!
Kill the boys …? 'Tis expressly against the law of arms.
Roberts and Guelff, Documents on the Laws of War, 3rd edn, Oxford, 2000
Schindler and Toman, The Laws of Armed Conflict, 4th edn, Leiden, 2004 (documents)
UK Ministry of Defence, The Manual of the Law of Armed Conflict, Oxford, 2004
Oppenheim, Oppenheim's International Law, 7th edn, London, 1952, vol. II
Pictet (ed.), The Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949: Commentary, Geneva, 1953–60, 4 vols.
Green, The Contemporary Law of Armed Conflict, 2nd ed, Manchester, 2000
The first quote is of Henry V's supposed reaction at the Battle of Agincourt 1415 to the murder of his army's boy servants. The second is that of his Welsh captain, Fluellen, who clearly had a better understanding of the Law of Arms (later the Laws of War). This chapter is headed ‘The law of armed conflict’ since that is the more correct term to describe the international law governing the conduct of hostilities, including military occupation. International lawyers also use the Latin term jus in bello to distinguish it from jus ad bellum, the law on the use of force. But the currently fashionable term used by the United Nations, the International Court of Justice and the International Committee of the Red Cross is ‘international humanitarian law’ (IHL). This reflects the law's fundamentally humanitarian purpose, but can mislead people into thinking that the subject covers all human rights, or even that it is concerned with humanitarian aid.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Handbook of International Law , pp. 251 - 262Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2005