Search: Symposium on the Functional Approach to the Law of Occupation
25 Nov Reply to Professor Bartow
as [sic] it does not discuss international law at all. There are many salient aspects of international law the author could have engaged with, particularly related to sex trafficking . . . . But since part of his goal was to dismiss harms associated with pornography production, he ignored them.” The article was published in the Yale Journal of International Law, which, notwithstanding its title, is a forum devoted to comparative as well as international law. It examines the doctrine of obscenity, which criminalizes expression even in the absence of...
23 Aug Palestinian Self-Determination between Sovereignty and Conquest: Exploring Public and Private Power in the recent ICJ’s Advisory Opinion on the Illegality of Israel’s Occupation
[ Michelle Burgis-Kasthala is Professor of International Law and Global Governance at the University of Edinburgh Law School. Matilde Masetti Placci is a PhD candidate at the University of Edinburgh Law School, and her thesis focusses on the history and theory of international law.] On 19th July, the ICJ handed down its long-awaited advisory opinion examining the legal status of Israel’s occupation across the Palestinian territories of East Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. While the Court explicitly shelved analysis of Israel’s assault on Gaza since October 2023...
30 Jul Symposium on Unbroken Bond: Tracing the Ties Between African and Palestinian Anti-Colonial Struggles – Chains of Oppression: The Interconnected Struggles for Justice in Palestine, Kashmir and Sudan
[Mariam Hiba Malik is an international lawyer and LL.M. in International Law Candidate at the Geneva Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, specialising in the Protection of the Individual in International law] The recent ICJ Advisory Opinion on the illegality of Israel’s occupation in Palestine underscores the international community’s recognition of systemic injustices and the urgency for enforcing existing legal frameworks to address such violations. Palestinians’ resistance against occupation and their struggle for self-determination have important parallels to the battles against systemic oppression and colonial remnants in Kashmir and...
15 Jan Symposium: Internationalized Armed Conflicts in International Law–A Review
marks out IACs from NIACs. The book argues that in principle occupation should be seen as applicable to internationalised armed conflicts, recognising of course the academic and practical controversies and complications. Chapter 8 traces the history of evolving occupation law noting its roots in inter-state situations and in what is described as the “individualization of the law of belligerent occupation” (p. 195) i.e. bringing individuals’ interests to the fore. Objections to the practical applicability of occupation law to internationalised armed conflicts based on perceived lack of legal personality of armed...
17 May Who are the Occupants? — A Reply to Dr. Nguyen’s Post
[Junru Lyu is a J.D. Candidate at Georgetown University Law Center, with an LL.B. degree obtained from Shandong University.] Photo credit: Gallo Images—Getty Images On Apr. 17th, Dr. Trung Nguyen Quoc Tan published his post concerning the occupation status of the Paracel Islands and the Spratly Islands. He claims in his post that given China’s military and paramilitary activities in the South China Sea over the last decades, using the law of occupation could help Vietnam to claim a return of the Islands from China. From the law and the...
02 Apr What does the Bogota Declaration Mean for Corporations?
[ Shahd Hammouri is a lecturer in international law and legal theory at the University of Kent. She is the author of the forthcoming book Corporate War Profiteering and International Law (Cambridge University Press, 2026). James Yap is a Canadian lawyer, President of Canadian Lawyers for International Human Rights (CLAIHR) and teaches international human rights law at University of Windsor.] In perhaps the most ambitious multilateral action since the start of the war on Gaza over two years ago, representatives from 30 states gathered in Bogotá in July 2025 to coordinate...
28 Apr AI and Machine Learning Symposium: Why Detention, Humanitarian Services, Maritime Systems, and Legal Advice Merit Greater Attention
[Dustin A. Lewis is the Research Director at Harvard Law School Program on International Law and Armed Conflict. This post is part of our symposium on legal, operational, and ethical questions on the use of AI and machine learning in armed conflict.] I am grateful for the invitation to contribute to this online symposium. The preservation of international legal responsibility and agency concerning the employment of artificial-intelligence techniques and methods in relation to situations of armed conflict presents an array of pressing challenges and opportunities. In this post, I will...
11 Sep Libya and International Justice Symposium: The Quest for Accountability in Libya–A Pressing but Neglected Concern
reveals that the current accountability challenges in Libya are rooted in an inadequate legal framework that fails to conform to international law and standards. The Penal Code and supplemental criminal laws are not adequately equipped to provide justice for crimes under international law. The definitions of torture and ill-treatment, enforced disappearance, enslavement, and rape and other acts of sexual violence in the Penal Code, Law No. 10 of 2013 and Law No. 12 of 2010 are inconsistent with international definitions, and war crimes and crimes against humanity are not penalized...17 Mar YLS Sale Symposium: Sale’s Legacies
[Harold Hongju Koh is Sterling Professor of International Law at Yale Law School. He served as Legal Adviser, U.S. Department of State, from 2009-13 and Counsel of Record for plaintiffs in Sale v. Haitian Centers Council, from 1992-93.] Why, two decades later, does the Sale v. Haitian Centers Council litigation still spark such interest? This year alone, symposia about the litigation have transpired at law schools at Yale, Columbia, Howard, Brooklyn, and in London. The case has been dissected in first-year Procedure Classes at Yale, Columbia, Touro, University of Connecticut,...
21 Jan Symposium: Comment on “Internationalized Armed Conflicts in International Law”
“Internationalized Armed Conflicts in International Law” by Kubo Mačák presents a detailed and insightful analysis of the tipping point at which non-international armed conflict (NIAC) may be ‘internationalized’ and considered to be an international armed conflict (IAC), with the focus in particular in relation to the status of combatants and the law of occupation. Far from esoteric, the topic is timely, relevant and has a real impact on the rights and obligations in the conduct of warfare. A few observations as I perused the book – some general in nature,...