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12 Oct

Since my fields of research include criminal law, international law, and international humanitarian law, several colleagues and students have asked for my preliminary legal assessment regarding the recent attacks in Israel by Hamas terrorists. These terrorist attacks were egregious and shocking violations of human dignity and cannot be justified in any context. Although facts are still being gathered, the available evidence suggests that the killings and kidnappings constituted war crimes in violation of Article 8 of the Rome Statute and customary international law. In addition to the...
12.10.23 | |

11 Mar

...Russian and NATO representatives now is whether any promises not to expand the Alliance eastwards were actually made. According to NATO’s Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, such promises were never made. However, a recently published historical document suggests that the non-expansion of NATO was indeed discussed during negotiations. On February 18, 2022, the German newspaper Der Spiegel published declassified notes of a meeting between the political directors of the foreign ministries of the United States, Great Britain, France, and Germany that took place in Bonn on March 6, 1991. Those notes were...
11.03.22 | |

26 Jan

[Jonathan Horowitz is a Legal Officer on National Security and Counterterrorism in the Open Society Justice Initiative. This post is based on his recently published article in Emory International Law Review, “ Reaffirming the Role of Human Rights in a Time of “Global” Armed Conflict ,” and will also appear in a longer form and under a different title in a forthcoming book, Theoretical Boundaries of Armed Conflict and Human Rights , edited by Jens Ohlin for Cambridge University Press.] If a foreign State asked you (a government official) permission...
26.01.16 | |

06 Sep

This week on Opinio Juris, we welcomed Jens Ohlin to our masthead. Kevin asked whether it’s time to reconsider the al-Senussi admissibility decision, linked to a Rolling Stone article about Chevron and the Lago Agrio case, and criticized attempts to assess the proportionality of an attack based on combatant:civilian kill ratios. There was more on the Gaza Conflict in a guest post by Liron Libman, who examined if the Palestinian Authority’s leadership can be held responsible for the Al Aqsah Martyrs’ Brigade’s actions during the conflict. In other posts, Kristen...
06.09.14 | |

03 Jun

...book assesses the extent to which specific approaches and assumptions, both positive and negative, regarding the potential impact of the Court are in need of re-thinking. This book will be essential reading for practitioners, scholars, and students of international criminal law. The book includes my essay on Regulation 55 and an essay on co-perpetration by Jens. At £195, most people won’t be able to buy a copy. But four chapters are available for free download and most libraries are sure to acquire it. Congratulations to Carsten on a tremendous accomplishment!...
03.06.15 | |

07 Feb

This week on Opinio Juris, Kevin argued that the CIA and Mossad violated the Terrorist Bombing Convention in the 2008 bombing of Imad Mughniyah, Hezbollah’s international operations chief. Kevin also responded to Ryan Goodman’s Just Security post on Serdar Mohammed. A second part of that response is still to come, but Kevin already flagged the ICRC’s November 2014 Opinion Paper on detention in NIAC. Kevin also recommended Jens’ new book, and for the month of February OUP is offering a discount to our readers, so be quick to grab your...
07.02.15 | |

26 Nov

[Jennifer Trahan is an Associate Clinical Professor at the Center for Global Affairs at New York University.] As Jens Ohlin has written, a highly awaited verdict came out Wednesday, November 22, sentencing Ratko Mladic, former commander of the Main Staff of the Bosnian Serb Army (VRS), to life in prison for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity committed from 1992-1995. The verdict was not unexpected given Mladić’s lengthy trial, and that his involvement as commander of the troops who committed the Srebrenica massacre was recorded on well–known news footage....
26.11.17 | |

31 May

Over the last two weeks at Opinio Juris, we’ve seen several contributions. Our regular bloggers covered a number of recent developments such as Deborah’s recent post, cross-posted on Just Security, on the D.C. district court’s considering the habeas petition of Guantanamo detainee Mukhtar Yahia Naji al Warafi, and the concept of “active hostilities.” On a related note, Jens covered the nature and scope of the conflict in Afghanistan. Kristen pointed out that the ILC has now appointed a special rapporteur on jus cogens and also highlighted two recent reports on...
31.05.15 | |

29 May

...and argues that there is reason to be skeptical about the theory’s application in the international context. Excellent commentary will be provided by Jens David Ohlin (Cornell Law School), Adil Ahmad Haque (Rutgers School of Law-Newark), and Jonathan Baron (University of Pennsylvania). On Wednesday, we continue with Alvaro Santos’s (Georgetown University Law Center) Article, “Carving Out Policy Autonomy for Developing Countries in the World Trade Organization: The Experience of Mexico & Brazil.” Santos contends that developing countries in the WTO can use strategies of lawyering and litigation to influence rule...
29.05.12 | |

17 Feb

...soldiers but also kills civilians is not 'terrorism' if it is used discriminately, proportionaly and under military necessity - yet civilians still die. Shouldn't the same calculus be applied to suicide-bombers? That is, if their action is directed against combatants, used discriminately, proportionaly and under military necessity, and civilian death are only incidental, then neither should suicide bombers be terrorists. Unless the significant difference is suicide? But that seems to make neither practical nor legal sense... Eric Iverson It seems to me that what is missing in this conversation is...
17.02.06 | |

16 Jul

Kari We're looking forward to having you!!! Kevin Jon Heller Thanks, Kari! Patrick S. O'Donnell Wonderful news. Hearty congratulations Kevin! Kenneth Anderson Kevin, congratulations - what a well deserved honor! Very best to you and your family in the move. Benjamin Davis London calling! - http://youtu.be/4vHvzybkqfo Best, Ben Jens Ohlin Congratulations. Wonderful news....
16.07.13 | |

07 Nov

Jens David Ohlin Thanks for this very interesting post. Although it is impossible to gleam much information from a TV show, there are two ways of interpreting the idea of conspiring to aid and abet. The first is to interpret the conspiracy element as a substantive offense, in which case the prosecutor would be trying to make an inchoate crime out of aiding and abetting terrorism. The second is to interpret conspiracy as a mode of liability, in which case the prosecutor is trying to join two modes of liability...
07.11.11 | |