Greece: A hands-on workshop on International Humanitarian Law

On 30 November and 1 December 2021, the ICRC and the training division of the Hellenic National Defense General Staff (HNDGS) organized a two-day workshop entitled "International Humanitarian Law – Integrating the Law in Military Operations" at the Athens War Museum.

Despite the challenges that continue to be posed by COVID-19, collaboration with the Hellenic Armed Forces has continued, and the ICRC managed to organize the workshop in person after nearly two years of cancellations and online events.

The event was attended by 50 senior military officers. Its main themes included considerations of the use of force in the targeting process, the humanitarian factor in the military decision-making process, direct participation in hostilities, State obligations under IHL, investigations in the event of suspected violations of IHL, and sanctions and command responsibility.

Of note, participants analyzed a case study of a complex conflict set in the fictional country "Karamba". This was animated by ICRC VRT images, which facilitated the discussion of the main themes.

Later in the month, the ICRC had the honour to attend the event launching the Manual on the Law of the Armed Conflicts (aka International Humanitarian Law) organized by the Legal Division of the Hellenic National Defence General Staff and NATO's Rapid Deployment Corps-Greece (NRDC GR) Office of the Legal Advisor. This manual constitutes an important development that will allow the further integration of IHL within the Hellenic Armed Forces.