There are many reasons to demand closing Guantanamo Bay and ending the military commissions, such as the government's tendency to invent armed conflicts in order to convict defendants of imaginary war crimes. But even if you don't care about the integrity of international humanitarian law or the coherence of the American approach to that body of law, you should still...
The Naval War College has published the latest volume in its Blue Book series. Here is the description and information about how to obtain it (although you can simply get the PDF here): The Naval War College International Law Department recently published volume 87 of its International Law Studies "Blue Book" series. The Blue Book has served as...
Next Friday (November 18), Berkeley (along with the ICRC and ASIL's Lieber Society) is hosting what looks like a fantastic conference on the issue of 'cyber war' and the relevant questions of law, ethics and policy. Here's how they're describing it: The seminar will examine legal, ethical and policy issues posed by cyber warfare. While much attention has been paid to jus...
Tonight's episode of The Good Wife featured a Muslim-American man -- a former Army translator in Afghanistan -- who sues the U.S. government for torture and ends up being accused of supporting al-Qaeda. It was quite a fascinating episode; it's not everyday that a mainstream television show is built around Executive Order 13324, which blocks property and prohibits transactions with...
I am deeply grateful to both my co-bloggers at Opinio Juris and the editors of EJIL: Talk! – particularly my friends Marko Milanovic and Dapo Akande – for this remarkable opportunity to discuss my new book. I look forward to hearing what the impressive, and frankly intimidating, group of commenters have to say about it. I wrote this book for one...
As Roger has pointed out, the Ninth Circuit has just released a blockbuster ATS decision in the Rio Tinto case. There is a great deal to like in the decision, particularly concerning the liability of corporations under the ATS, but it's regrettable that the majority refused to address the knowledge/intent "debate" concerning the mens rea of aid and abetting under...
David Cortright, the policy director of the Kroc Institute for International PeaceStudies at Notre Dame has posted an article to CNN.com looking at the prospect of the wide-spread proliferation of drone warfare. He begins: Drone technology is spreading rapidly. As many as 50 countries are developing or purchasing these systems, including China, Russia, India, Pakistan, and Iran. Even non-state actors are involved. Hezbollah reportedly...
In my previous post, I responded to Mike's attempt to explain the amicus brief's distortion of ICTY jurisprudence. In this post, I want to respond to his similar attempt to explain the amicus brief's distortion of the Rome Statute. There are two basic issues: Article 10 of the Rome Statute's relationship to customary international law, and the importance of Article...
There are numerous problems with Mike's response to my posts (here and here) about how the amicus brief distorts the ICTY's jurisprudence. Before getting to them, though, it's important to acknowledge that he and I agree about one thing: decisions of the ICTY are not primary sources of international law. That, too, is international law 101. Even here, though, the...
As readers know, a few of us on the blog have been debating whether the law of neutrality has any relevance to the United States' conflict with al-Qaeda. I'm thus delighted to announce that three essays on that very issue are now available on SSRN as part of a mini-symposium hosted by the Texas International Law Journal. The lead essay...
It appears the right-wing has settled on a shiny new historical comparison to justify the targeted killing of Anwar al-Awlaki. Here is Jack Goldsmith in the New York Times: An attack on an enemy soldier during war is not an assassination. During World War II, the United States targeted and killed Adm. Isoroku Yamamoto, the architect of the Japanese...
The following is a guest-post by David Glazier, Associate Professor of Law at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles. Our thanks to him for providing it. As Kevin noted on Wednesday, the Department of Defense approved military commission charges against Abd Al Rahim Hussayn Muhammad Al Nashiri, alleged USS Cole bombing mastermind, clearing the way for his arraignment and subsequent trial. ...
