[Richard Mackenzie-Gray Scott is the author of State Responsibility for Non-State Actors: Past, Present and Prospects for the Future (Oxford: Hart | Bloomsbury, 2022, re-issued in paperback 2024)] This is the first part of a two-part post; see Part II here. Information operations can impact societies in many ways. Whether by undermining specific human rights, for example, as a result of
crossing the line between ‘lawful influence and unlawful manipulation’ of thought, or by eroding trust in democratic institutions, these operations pose multifaceted risks to domestic, regional, and international stability....