Europe

[Dobrin Dobrev is a recent graduate from Utrecht University’s master’s program in International Law from the Conflict and Security track] Introduction Commercial shipping in the Black Sea has encountered restrictions ever since the full-scale invasion by Russia towards Ukraine began. One of the issues revolves around the rising number of sea-mines in the Black Sea, which are negatively impacting not only the belligerents...

[Victoria Priori is a PhD Candidate in International Law at the Geneva Graduate Institute and a Teaching Assistant at the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights] The prohibition of torture is nowadays universally recognised and agreed upon in international law. Since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, torture has been proscribed in most...

[Esti Tambay is a Strategic Litigation Officer at the Open Society Justice initiative, working primarily on accountability for international crimes. Anna Khalfaoui is an Associate Lawyer at Open Society Justice Initiative, working primarily on accountability for international crimes and climate justice.] The Wagner Group has been associated with international crimes and serious human rights violations in Ukraine since the launch of Russia’s full-scale...

[Dobrin Dobrev is a recent graduate from Utrecht University's master's program in International Law from the Conflict and Security track.] 1. Introduction On the 24th of February 2022, the Russian Federation launched a full-scale invasion against Ukraine, marking the beginning of the biggest European conflict in the 21st century. Since the invasion began, the Black Sea has received significant attention due to its...

“In April 2017, the Human Rights Committee had reiterated its concerns about the Irish performance  regarding the accountability for Church-related institutional abuses, and had recommended that Ireland  conducted an independent and thorough investigation and prosecuted and punished the perpetrators of  abuse and ill-treatment at the Magdalene Laundries.” Committee against Torture considers report of Ireland, 28 July 2017 Victims of Magdalene Laundries have...

[Ana Srovin Coralli works as a Teaching Assistant in the International Law Department of the Geneva Graduate Institute, where she is pursuing her PhD entitled Bringing Perpetrators of Enforced Disappearances to Justice: In the Shoes of the Prosecutors] The International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances (30 August 2023) was accompanied with a true victory for accountability: an announcement of the upcoming trial for enforced...

[Patricio Barbirotto is a research fellow and adjunct professor of international law at Ca' Foscari University of Venice] The awareness of the environmental damages provoked by armed conflicts has constantly been increasing after the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945, and in particular since the Vietnam War. The invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation on 24 February 2022, occurred...

Evropeyska Pravda is reporting that, although clearly not its first choice, Ukraine would be willing to accept an internationalized tribunal for the crime of aggression as long as it is based in another state's judicial system. Here are the relevant paragraphs, quoting the Deputy Head of the Office of the President: Ukraine decided on these concessions, Andriy Smirnov admitted for the...

[Mariana Gkliati is an Assistant Professor at Tilburg University. Danai Angeli is an Assistant Professor at Biklent University. Elizabeth Mavropoulou is a Lecturer at the University of Westminster. Niovi Vavoula is an Associate Professor at the Queen Mary University of London.] This blogpost was released on 11 July as an open letter to Greek and EU authorities, undersigned by 350 academics...

[Waleed Mahmoud Elfarrs, PhD Candidate in international law at Ghent University, is a legal expert consulting on armed conflict in the context of the MENA region.] [Mona Ghyoot is a Master in Laws student at Ghent University, specializing in public international law and writing a master’s thesis on universal jurisdiction.] 1.     Introduction On 12 May 2023, the French Court of Cassation delivered two landmark decisions on the...

On June 24, 2023, members of the Wagner mercenary group staged an armed revolt against Russian President Vladimir Putin and began an advance on Moscow that ended suddenly, after intervention and mediation by Belarusian President Lukashenko, on the same day. In this post, I present, analyse and systematise the statements and reactions of fifty-nine states. Before we start, let me...