Webinar: Use of Force in Armed Conflicts. Interplay between the Conduct of Hostilities and Law Enforcement Paradigms

In contemporary armed conflicts, in particular in non-international armed conflicts and occupations, armed forces are increasingly expected to conduct not only combat operations against the adversary, but also law enforcement operations, in order to maintain or restore public security, law and order. In practice, it is sometimes difficult to draw the line between situations governed by the conduct of hostilities paradigm (derived from international humanitarian law) and those governed by the law enforcement paradigm (mainly derived from human rights law). Effective determination of the appropriate applicable paradigm may have a crucial impact on the humanitarian consequences of an operation, since the rules and principles shaping the two paradigms are different.

In order to shed further light on these issues, the ICRC has organized an expert meeting on the topic and subsequently published an Expert Meeting Report (end of 2013) in English.

The aim of this webinar is to discuss the conclusions set forward in the Expert Meeting Report.

Panelists:

• Gloria Gaggioli, former ICRC Thematic Legal Advisor, Associate professor, University of Geneva
• Brigadier General Richard Gross, Legal Counsel to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
• David Kretzmer, Emeritus Professor, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
• Colonel Juan Carlos Gómez Ramirez, Ministry of Defence, Colombia
• Moderated by: Jamie Allan Williamson, Head of Unit, Unit for Relations with Arms Carriers

Listen to the recording of the event:

-  Case Study 1 – The “Sleeping Fighter” or the use of force against legitimate targets

- Case Study 2 – Riot situation

- Case Study 3 – Checkpoint scenario

- Closing remarks

See also:

• Law and Policy Platform - ICRC's platform for training, research and debate on humanitarian law and action
• Humanitarium - The international forum for exchange and debate on humanitarian law, policy and action
• The use of force in armed conflicts: expert meeting