Search: drones
12 Feb Weekday News Wrap: Tuesday, February 12, 2013
...shawls, which Orthodox tradition sees as solely for men. The UN has urged a greater push toward ending forced labor. Human Rights Watch offers a Q&A about Laurent Gbagbo, the former Ivory Coast president before the ICC for the alleged commission of crimes against humanity; the confirmation of the charges hearing is set to take place next Tuesday, February 19. The LA Times has an op-ed asking the questions related to the use of drones: Are we creating more enemies than we are killing? Esquire has a piece on one...14 Oct Guest Post: Air Strikes in Syria–Questions Surrounding the Necessity and Proportionality Requirements in the Exercise of Self-Defense
...IS terrorists using drones and France’s joining the air campaign to bomb IS positions in Syrian territory. The extent to which air strikes would meet the necessity and proportionality requirements in the exercise of the right to self-defense under Article 51, however, remains less explored. This post does not aim to consider the issue of the permissibility of engaging in unilateral forcible measures against unattributable attacks by private groups. However, even assuming that the lawful exercise of the right of self-defense extends to action against irregular forces, it can be...15 May Book Discussion “Outsourcing War and Peace”: The Rise of Private Military Contractors and the Importance of Public Values
...a significant role in operating the drones that have become a central tool in our efforts to combat terrorism. All of this contracting poses an enormous threat to what we might call public values. These values include the core value of human dignity as embodied in international human rights law, as well as the values embedded in international humanitarian law, such as the idea that the use of force is limited even during armed conflict. In addition, other core values include transparency, democratic participation in decision-making, and accountability (sometimes referred...23 Jul Weekday News Wrap: Monday, July 23, 2012
...Shots were fired from Egypt into Israel at an Israeli army bus, but no one was hurt; the incident may heighten fears of an eroding Egyptian Sinai security since the fall of Hosni Mubarak. This comes after a portion of the Egypt-Israel-Jordan pipeline was exploded over the weekend. The US’ Defense Department is looking into sending drones to Kenya to help fight al-Qaeda and al-Shebaab militants, mainly in Somalia. Afghanistan’s intensifying “war by social media” has stepped up with new free speech activists using Twitter and Facebook to combat NATO...30 May Weekday News Wrap: Wednesday, May 30, 2012
...count of genocide by murder and one count of crimes against humanity by murder. The UN is going to release a warning about the Flame computer virus. Lawfare offers more insight about the virus, as does Foreign Policy. And with more context of viruses, generally, Homeland Security Watch urges everyone to stop calling all cyber somethings “cyber attacks.” After yesterday’s New York Times story about Obama and targeted killings pointed out by our own Deborah Pearlstein, Foreign Policy mapped where the drones are. Talks are underway in Addis Ababa to...25 May Meanwhile, Back to Important Policy Debates Over … EVOO
Though I’m as much caught up in the drones debate du jour as anyone here at OJ, there are other pressing matters internationally, and one of them is olive oil. I’ve blogged about EVOO adulteration in the past year, but the current contretemps is different. EU regulators want to require that restaurants serve olive oil at the table in sealed individual servings (I guess a little bit like the little sealed catsup bottles one sometimes sees in restaurants in the USA) rather than the common practice of serving olive oil,...03 Sep Ben Wittes’ Unconvincing “Hostage-Taking” Analogy (Updated)
...assets? I’m sure he’s shaking. This leads to my second point: The idea that Anwar al-Alauqi is being targeted for death and has no means of availing himself of his rights as a U.S. national is wrong. Like the hostage-taker, he has a remedy that will ensure his safety and give him the opportunity to defend himself: He can turn himself in. He can knock on the door of any U.S. consulate and say, “I hear you guys are looking for me.” No special forces guys, Predator drones, or air...20 Feb AlphaDogs, Cheetah-bots, and Mecha-Avatars
...includes the “room clearing, sentry control [and] combat casualty recovery.” And all at the bidding of their human partner. [Emphasis added.] You can place a Terminator or Avatar joke here (two James Cameron movies, huh), but I think this is a better film metaphor (and it’s by “District 9 ” director Neill Blomkamp). So, while these mecha-avatars will not be autonomous, they will be remotely-controlled armed bipedal drones. As a legal matter, one could say that this is similar to our current use of UAV’s. But I don’t think so....