War and what we make of the law

July 18, 2024 10 mins read Accountability / Analysis / Conduct of Hostilities / Generating Respect for IHL / Humanitarian Principles / IHL / Special Themes / The Geneva Conventions at 75 Cordula Droege

Preventing the catastrophic human cost of war is a central purpose of modern international law. ...

Principles under pressure: have humanitarian principles really stood the test of time?

July 11, 2024 12 mins read Analysis / Back to basics: humanitarian principles in contemporary armed conflict / Humanitarian Action / Humanitarian Principles / Special Themes Olivier Ray

Recent conflicts have brought to light the jarring personal dilemmas humanitarian workers confront and provoked ...

De-dehumanization: practicing humanity

June 27, 2024 15 mins read Analysis / Back to basics: humanitarian principles in contemporary armed conflict / Humanitarian Principles / IHL / Special Themes / The Geneva Conventions at 75 Natalie Deffenbaugh

There is today an idea of a single humanity, with each member equally valued, and ...

Protecting civilians in conflict: the urgency of implementing the Political Declaration on Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas

April 22, 2024 9 mins read Analysis / Generating Respect for IHL / IHL / Influencing Behaviour in Armed Conflict / Urban warfare / Weapons Laura Boillot, Laurent Gisel, Paul Holtom, Frederik Siem, Dina Abou Samra & Juliana Helou van der Berg

The widespread use of heavy explosive weapons has reached alarming levels, exacting a staggering toll ...

Codifying IHL before Lieber and Dunant: the 1820 treaty for the regularization of war

April 4, 2024 13 mins read Analysis / History / Humanitarian Principles / IHL / Law and Conflict / Related bodies of law / Special Themes / The Geneva Conventions at 75 Jacob Coffelt

Before the Lieber Code and Geneva Conventions came a treaty between the Spanish Empire and ...

From theology to technology: a call for IHL ambassadors in the Asia-Pacific region

March 28, 2024 11 mins read Analysis / Education in Armed Conflict / Generating Respect for IHL / Humanitarian Action / IHL / Special Themes / The Geneva Conventions at 75 Jonathan Kwik, Ai Kihara-Hunt & Kelisiana Thynne

The Asia-Pacific region is diverse in religious, ethnic and historical backgrounds as well as in ...

Towards national implementation of IHL: Arab states pledge their commitment

February 15, 2024 7 mins read Analysis / Generating Respect for IHL / IHL / Special Themes / The Geneva Conventions at 75 Yasmin Bedir & Omar Mekky

The work and contribution of national committees on IHL (NCIHLs) can be relevant in a ...

The complex neutrality of commercial space actors in armed conflict

November 16, 2023 12 mins read Analysis / Communications / Humanitarian Principles / Outer Space / Technology in Humanitarian Action / War, law, and outer space Guoyu Wang

During an international armed conflict, commercial space actors under the jurisdiction or control of a ...

Navigating dilemmas in people-centric humanitarian action

August 31, 2023 17 mins read Accountability / Analysis / Humanitarian Action / Humanitarian Principles / Social Inclusion / Social Protection Indu Nepal & Natalie Klein-Kelly

There is now a general consensus that being accountable to people affected by conflict and ...

People, principles, and processes: accountability in humanitarian action

August 29, 2023 15 mins read Accountability / Accountability / Analysis / Humanitarian Action / Humanitarian Principles David Loquercio & Martin Schüepp

In an ever-evolving global landscape, the dynamics of humanitarian work are constantly challenged and shaped ...

Photographing neutrality: a personal reflection from the field

August 10, 2023 5 mins read Analysis / Back to basics: humanitarian principles in contemporary armed conflict / Communications / Humanitarian Action / Humanitarian Principles / Influencing Behaviour in Armed Conflict Stephanie Xu

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but images taken during modern conflicts ...

Supporting social protection: five considerations for a principled humanitarian approach

June 8, 2023 10 mins read Access / Analysis / Humanitarian Action / Localisation / Social Protection Colin Walch

As humanitarian organizations broaden their mindset from saving lives in emergencies to making a more ...