IHL/LOAC

Discussing Autonomous Weapons Systems and IHL at Case Western Law

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Case Western University School of Law’s annual international law symposium this year focused on the question of whether the Geneva Conventions, enjoying their 75th Anniversary, need to be updated to deal with new challenges, including the application of IHL to space, expanding transnational conflicts with non-state actors, cyber-war, and the development and deployment of fully autonomous weapons systems. The conference began with a closed experts group meeting to discuss the development of a white paper on the issues, followed by an open conference with panels on each of the major topics.

My panel, with Laurie Blank of Emory Univ. Law, Milena Sterio of Cleveland Univ. Law, and Romina Morello of the ICRC, fielded questions from Paul Williams of American Univ. Law, on whether, and how, the Geneva Conventions might need to be updated in some form to better regulate the use of autonomous weapons systems. My article on the subject will be published next year in the Case Western Journal of International Law. Great conference.

JIB/JAB: Episode 39 – Dill and Haque on IHL and the Conduct of the IDF in Gaza

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In this episode I discussed the question of whether it is possible now, while hostilities are still ongoing, to assess whether some aspects of the IDF’s conduct of hostilities may be in violation of IHL, with two of the top experts on the issues: Janina Dill of the University of Oxford and Adil Haque of Rutgers Law School. For more on the episode, including all the supporting reading material, visit the website!

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In the latest episode of JIB/JAB-The Laws of War Podcast, I have a cross-posted episode in which I am the guest of Jonathan Hafetz on his Law and Film Podcast to discuss the film Eye in the Sky. It is a 2015 film likely known to most JIB/JAB listeners, about a joint British and American drone strike against al-Shabaab terrorists in Kenya, and which intelligently and engagingly explores the legal, ethical, philosophical, political, and strategic issues raised by the operation. We not only examine the film’s treatment of the legal issues implicated, including whether IHL should apply at all, and how the principles of distinction, necessity, proportionality, and precautions in attack are illustrated in the film, but we also explore the relationship between these principles and some of the ethical and strategic aspects of the decision-making in the film. We round out the conversation with a discussion of some other engaging films that similarly explore law in the context of armed conflict. I very much enjoyed the conversation!

JIB/JAB-The Laws of War Podcast Back On-Line

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It was good to get JIB/JAB-The Laws of War Podcast back on-line after an almost 7 month hiatus! Started the new season with a fantastic new episode on the issues of sieges, the war crime of starvation, and the siege of Gaza, with Tom Dannenbaum of the Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy at Tufts University. The podcast has now been listened to almost 44,000 times in over 120 countries, so it feels like it is worth continuing, notwithstanding how much work it is!