Book

Littérature grise

Military operations, battlefield reality and the judgment's impact on effective implementation and enforcement of international humanitarian law

[Laurie R. Blank]

[Atlanta] : International Humanitarian Law Clinic at Emory University School of Law, 2012

17 p. ; 30 cm

English

Photocopies

On November 4, 2011, the International Humanitarian Law Clinic at Emory Law School convened a group of military operational law experts to analyze the broader legal issues in and implications of the recent judgment of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in the case of Prosecutor v. Gotovina, which focused on Operation Storm, the Croatian operation to re-take the Kraijina region in the summer of 1995.The report sets forth the experts’ consensus views and concerns regarding the application of the law in the judgment, highlighting four key areas: the imposition of what amounts to a strict liability standard imposed on commanders who attack lawful military objectives in populated areas; the flawed application of the principle of proportionality; the failure to consider or apply Article 58(b) of Additional Protocol I and its obligations for defending parties to take precautions; and the failure to properly recognize and rest the legal analysis on the operational complexity inherent in the targeting process. The report also emphasizes a range of institutional concerns and second order effects resulting from the judgment: the effect on future military operations; the consequences for the respect for and development of international law; and specific overarching concerns regarding the role of the commander and the role of legal advisers during military operations.

• Full text on SSRN