In association with the International Commission of Jurists

Search: crossing lines

04 Jun

...prohibited use of force in cyberspace under the jus ad bellum or where the lines are for an attack under the jus in bello. The Tallinn Manual is the paradigmatic example of this (often quite good) work. More recently, States and scholars have moved on to cyber operations below these lines, with attention shifting in Tallinn and elsewhere to which cyber operations may generate counter-measures and defining when cyber operations violate the duty of non-intervention. Such efforts have (so far) had relatively little to say on the question of a...
04.06.15 | |

31 Jan

Well, sort of. Yoo and co-author Robert Delahunty have a provocative piece in the latest edition of the National Interest (“Lines in the Sand,” not available on-line, but you can get it on Lexis) in which they argue against the primacy of the nation-state, or at least the primacy of existing nation-states. The cash-out here, of course, is splitting up Iraq. I don’t know enough about the context there to buy in or out, but it’s clear that in some situations (Somaliland probably now the best example) redrawing borders makes...
31.01.07 | |

29 Apr

For a while there, it looked as if there might be a real fight over Harold Koh’s nomination as State Department Legal Adviser. The Republicans have been casting about for a nomination that they could defeat on some issue of principle (that is, over something not involving a nominee’s tax returns), along the lines of Lani Guinier’s failed nomination to the Clinton Justice Department. It might also be useful for them to pick up a rallying call. Anti-internationalism has looked pretty promising. As fringe elements started taking shots at Koh,...
29.04.09 | |

01 May

...is easy to see why his 1970 reasoning resonates throughout the Bush Administration's 2002 and 2003 memorandums. Just as Bybee finds that torture isn't torture, Rehnquist argued that the invasion of Cambodia wasn't really an invasion: "By crossing the Cambodian border to attack sanctuaries used by the enemy, the United States has in no sense gone to war with Cambodia." The Bybee memo offers officials accused of torture the "necessity" defense; in 1970, Rehnquist argued that pursuing Vietcong troops into previously neutral territory was "necessary to assure [American troops'] safety...
01.05.08 | |

28 Feb

...of moral development. Depending on the access and ability to manipulate the levers of power, a state can allow itself to be bound by such obligations for a mix of reasons that may be associated with one some or all of the moral stages as articulated through the interactions of humans in that state. Just some thoughts. Best, Ben Harlan G. Cohen Roger, I think I've been thinking along similar lines to you about Andrew Guzman's theory. I too have been concerned that his rational choice theory may not tell...
28.02.08 | |

05 Aug

...law. On the Seminole point, why does no one address this point. Is it terribly uncomfortable to come to grips with the Seminoles not being a non-state actor but being a sovereign in their territory? Very heavy isn't it? The history is so deep on these things and we blithely go over it without looking at the underlying truth. It changes the entire way of looking at those events. We have to be very suspicious of party lines and revisionist party lines if we are doing this kind of history....
05.08.11 | |

03 Jan

humblelawstudent Let's clarify a few things. First, let's look at this statement of yours: "I do not know enough to conclude that Israel’s attacks are criminal." Not to nit-pick, but don’t you mean something along the lines of “whether a particular attack is criminal”? Second, you said, “Intentionally directing attacks against buildings dedicated to religion, education, art, or science is a war crime.” But, if such buildings are used by belligerents to create or store weaponry, then those “protected placed” become legitimate targets. See for example the allegations regarding Gaza...
03.01.09 | |

14 Apr

...would be tried by a Court Martial if commtted by a US soldier. When committed by an enemy soldier captured by the US, it can be tried as an ordinary crime by a Court Martial or military commission. Spying (technically crossing lines out of uniform) is an offense against the Laws of War, but one which may not be a crime and certainly is not a "war crime". The most prominent example is Captain Nathan Hale (1776) who we regard as a hero, not a criminal. There are a few...
14.04.07 | |

16 Jan

...along these lines: if the members of the UN can give precedence to the Charter, then that is part and parcel of international law. Respecting international law, you would then have to respect Article 103, and its derogating effect on conflicting treaty obligations, as well. But, of course, that is where your second point comes in, namely to show that the members of the could not give precedence to the Charter over obligations owed to non-members. I would argue that they could, in effect, have done that, though not without...
16.01.08 | |

11 Feb

...without infringing upon powers reserved to other branches, or by infringing no more than is permissible under the circumstances. (Enter the uncertainty of a our Constitution, the broad outlines of which were understood to require time to liquidate their meaning.) Moreover, objective advice is not necessarily the same as advocacy. What I advise my client in private is not necessarily the same as what I might ethically argue on my client's behalf in court. So I am curious whether Koh's public statements might be in part explained by the idea...
11.02.12 | |

25 Oct

...a scorecard which breaks so heavily along party lines. (I'd question it if it went the other way too). IAVA's Executive Director, Paul Reickoff (a former Democrat) gave the Democratic Response to the President in 2004, which also colors my judgment on the non-partisan nature of the group's scorecard. I'm certain the group does good work, but I don't know that the scorecard was the best example of that. I really think Roger hit the nail on the head with questioning why certain pieces of legislation made it onto the...
25.10.06 | |

25 Jan

..."The spy who secretly and without uniform passes the military lines of a belligerent in time of war, seeking to gather military information and communicate it to the enemy, or an enemy combatant who without uniform comes secretly through the lines for the purpose of waging war by destruction of life or property, are familiar examples of belligerents who are generally deemed not to be entitled to the status of prisoners of war, but to be offenders against the law of war subject to trial and punishment by military tribunals."...
25.01.07 | |