View source for International humanitarian law

{{distinguish|International human rights law}}
{{Short description|Law of war to protect non-combatants}}

{{Use American English|date=January 2019}}{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Jus in bello}}
'''International humanitarian law''' ('''IHL'''), also referred to as the '''laws of armed conflict''', is the law that regulates the conduct of [[war]] (''[[wikt:jus in bello|jus in bello]]'').<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Law of Armed Conflict: An Operational Approach |date=2012|publisher=Wolters Kluwer Law & Business|last1=Corn|first1= Geoffrey S.|isbn=9781454806905|location=New York|oclc=779607396}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite book|url=https://www.jagcnet.army.mil/Sites%5C%5Cio.nsf/0/EEF9422EB2C293B68525805A0063ABED/%24File/LOAC%20Deskbook%20final%20with%202016%20index%20(20%20Sep).pdf|title=Law of Armed Conflict Deskbook|publisher=The United States Army Judge Advocate General's Legal Center and School|year=2016|location=Charlottesville, VA|access-date=July 18, 2019|archive-date=March 22, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322174323/https://www.jagcnet.army.mil/Sites%5C%5Cio.nsf/0/EEF9422EB2C293B68525805A0063ABED/$File/LOAC%20Deskbook%20final%20with%202016%20index%20%2820%20Sep%29.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> It is a branch of [[international law]] that seeks to limit the effects of armed conflict by protecting persons who are not participants in hostilities and by restricting and regulating the means and methods of warfare available to [[combatants]].

International humanitarian law is inspired by considerations of humanity and the mitigation of human suffering. It comprises a set of rules, which is established by treaty or custom and that seeks to protect persons and property/objects that are or may be affected by armed conflict, and it limits the rights of parties to a conflict to use methods and means of warfare of their choice.<ref name="Topic Guide Archive">{{Cite web|url=https://gsdrc.org/topic-guides/|title=Topic Guide Archive|website=GSDRC|language=en-US|access-date=2019-08-27|archive-date=November 27, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211127203831/https://gsdrc.org/topic-guides/|url-status=dead}}</ref> Sources of international law include international agreements (the [[Geneva Conventions]]), [[customary international law]], general principles of nations, and [[case law]].<ref name=":0" /><ref>[[International Committee of the Red Cross|ICRC]]''[http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/humanitarian-law-factsheet What is international humanitarian law?] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070320035319/http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/humanitarian-law-factsheet |date=2007-03-20 }}''</ref> It defines the conduct and responsibilities of [[belligerent]] nations, [[neutral nations]], and individuals engaged in warfare, in relation to each other and to ''[[protected persons]]'', usually meaning [[non-combatant]]s. It is designed to balance humanitarian concerns and [[military necessity]], and subjects warfare to the rule of law by limiting its destructive effect and alleviating human suffering.<ref name="Topic Guide Archive"/> Serious violations of international humanitarian law are called [[war crimes]]. 

While IHL (''jus in bello'') concerns the rules and principles governing the conduct of warfare once armed conflict has begun, ''[[jus ad bellum]]'' pertains to the justification for resorting to war and includes the [[crime of aggression]]. Together the ''jus in bello'' and ''jus ad bellum'' comprise the two strands of the [[laws of war]] governing all aspects of international armed conflicts. The law is mandatory for nations bound by the appropriate treaties. There are also other customary unwritten rules of war, many of which were explored at the [[Nuremberg trials]]. IHL operates on a strict division between rules applicable in international armed conflict and [[civil war|internal armed conflict]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Stewart|first=James |title=Towards a Single Definition of Armed Conflict in International Humanitarian Law|journal=International Review of the Red Cross |date=30 June 2003|volume=850|pages=313–350|ssrn=1946414 |doi=10.1017/S1560775500115196 |doi-broken-date=October 14, 2025 |url=https://commons.allard.ubc.ca/fac_pubs/337 |url-access=subscription }}</ref>

Since its inception, IHL has faced criticism for the fact that the foreseeable killing of large numbers of citizens can be considered compliant with IHL, and its creation largely by Western powers in service of their own interests. There is academic debate whether IHL, which is formally constructed as a system that prohibits certain acts, can also facilitate violence against civilians when belligerents argue that their attacks are compliant with IHL.

== The law of Geneva and the law of The Hague ==
{{Main|Laws of War}}

Modern international humanitarian law is made up of two historical streams:

# The law of [[The Hague]], referred to in the past as the law of war proper; and
# The law of [[Geneva]], or humanitarian law.<ref>{{cite book |last=Pictet |first=Jean |title = Humanitarian law and the protection of war victims |publisher=Sijthoff |location=Leyden |year=1975|isbn=90-286-0305-0  |pages = 16–17 }}</ref>

The two streams take their names from a number of international conferences that took place in those two cities and which produced treaties relating to war and conflict, in particular the Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907, and the Geneva Conventions, the first of which was drawn up in 1863. Both deal with {{lang|la|[[jus in bello]]}}, which deals with the question of whether certain practices are acceptable during armed conflict.<ref>The Program for Humanitarian Policy and Conflict Research at Harvard University, [http://ihl.ihlresearch.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=page.viewpage&pageid=2083 "Brief Primer on IHL"], {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100419104833/http://ihl.ihlresearch.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=page.viewpage&pageid=2083 |date=2010-04-19 }}</ref>

The Law of The Hague, or the [[laws of war]] proper, "determines the rights and duties of belligerents in the conduct of operations and limits the choice of means in doing harm".<ref>{{cite book |last=Pictet |first=Jean |title=Development and Principles of International Law |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dHV7fix7nLcC&q=international+humanitarian+law |publisher=Martinus Nijhoff |location=Dordrecht |year=1985 |isbn=90-247-3199-2 |page=2 |access-date=2016-11-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140226105111/http://www.google.com/books?id=dHV7fix7nLcC&printsec=frontcover&dq=international+humanitarian+law&lr=&source=gbs_summary_s&cad=0 |archive-date=2014-02-26 |url-status=live }}</ref> In particular, it concerns itself with:

* the definition of combatants;
* establishes rules relating to the means and methods of warfare; and
* examines the issue of military objectives.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Kalshoven, Frits |author2=Liesbeth Zegveld |title=Constraints on the waging of war: An introduction to international humanitarian law |publisher=ICRC |location=Geneva |date=March 2001 |page=40 |url=http://www.icrc.org/Web/Eng/siteeng0.nsf/htmlall/p0793/$File/ICRC_002_0793.PDF!Open |access-date=2008-03-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071008210214/http://www.icrc.org/Web/Eng/siteeng0.nsf/htmlall/p0793/$File/ICRC_002_0793.PDF!Open |archive-date=2007-10-08 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Systematic attempts to limit the savagery of warfare only began to develop in the 19th century. Such concerns were able to build on the changing view of warfare by states influenced by the Age of Enlightenment. The purpose of warfare was to overcome the enemy state, which could be done by disabling the enemy combatants. Thus, "the distinction between combatants and civilians, the requirement that wounded and captured enemy combatants must be treated humanely, and that quarter must be given, some of the pillars of modern humanitarian law, all follow from this principle".<ref>{{cite book |first=Christopher |last=Greenwood |editor-last = Fleck |editor-first=Dieter |title=The Handbook of Humanitarian Law in Armed Conflicts |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=USA |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-19-923250-5 |page = 20 }}</ref>

== The law of Geneva ==
Fritz Munch sums up historical military practice before 1800: "The essential points seem to be these: In battle and in towns taken by force, combatants and non-combatants were killed and property was destroyed or looted."<ref>Fritz Munch, "History of the Laws of War", in: R. Bernhardt (ed.), ''Encyclopedia of Public International Law'' Volume IV (2000), pp.&nbsp;1386–1388.</ref> In the 17th century, the Dutch jurist [[Hugo Grotius]], widely regarded as the founder or father of public international law, wrote that "wars, for the attainment of their objects, it cannot be denied, must employ force and terror as their most proper agents".<ref>{{Cite book |url=http://www.constitution.org/gro/djbp_301.htm |title=On the Law of War and Peace |first=Hugo |last=Grotius |translator-first=A. C. |translator-last=Campbell <!--no publisher given:|location=London--> |year=1814 |at=Book 3, Chapter 1:VI |access-date=2009-02-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090430113017/http://www.constitution.org/gro/djbp_301.htm |archive-date=2009-04-30 |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Humanitarian norms in history ===
Even in the midst of the carnage of history, however, there have been frequent expressions and invocation of humanitarian norms for the protection of the victims of armed conflicts: the wounded, the sick and the shipwrecked. These date back to ancient times.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bernhardt |first=Rudolf |title=Encyclopedia of Public International Law |publisher=North-Holland |location=Amsterdam |year=1992 |isbn=0-444-86245-5 |volume = 2 |pages = 933–936 }}</ref>

In the Old Testament, the King of Israel prevents the slaying of the captured, following the prophet Elisha's admonition to spare enemy prisoners. In answer to a question from the King, [[Elisha]] said, "You shall not slay them. Would you slay those whom you have taken captive with your sword and with your bow? Set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink and go to their master."<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://ebible.com/bible/II%20Kings%206%3A%2021-23 |title=II Kings 6:21-23 |access-date=2009-02-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110710164727/http://ebible.com/bible/II%20Kings%206:%2021-23 |archive-date=2011-07-10 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In ancient India there are records (the [[Manusmrti|Laws of Manu]], for example) describing the types of weapons that should not be used: "When he fights with his foes in battle, let him not strike with weapons concealed (in wood), nor with (such as are) barbed, poisoned, or the points of which are blazing with fire."<ref>{{Cite book |url=http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/manu/manu07.htm |title=The Laws of Manu |at=VII.90 |access-date=2009-02-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090530202553/http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/manu/manu07.htm |archive-date=2009-05-30 |url-status=live }}</ref> There is also the command not to strike a eunuch nor the enemy "who folds his hands in supplication&nbsp;... Nor one who sleeps, nor one who has lost his coat of mail, nor one who is naked, nor one who is disarmed, nor one who looks on without taking part in the fight."<ref>[http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/manu/manu07.htm ''The Laws of Manu'' VII.91-92]. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090530202553/http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/manu/manu07.htm |date=2009-05-30 }} See also {{cite book |contributor-last=Singh |contributor-first=Nagendra |contribution=Armed conflicts and humanitarian laws of ancient India |first=C. |last=Swinarski |title=Studies and Essays on International Humanitarian Law and Red Cross Principles |publisher=Kluwer Law International |location=The Hague |year=1985 |pages= 531–536 |isbn=90-247-3079-1 }}</ref>

Islamic law states that "[[non-combatants]] who did not take part in fighting such as women, children, monks and hermits, the aged, blind, and insane" were not to be molested.<ref>{{cite book |last=Khadduri |first=Majid |title=War And Peace in the Law of Islam |publisher=Lawbook Exchange |location=New York City |year=2006 |isbn=1-58477-695-1 |pages=103–04}}</ref> The first Caliph, [[Abu Bakr]], proclaimed, "Do not mutilate. Do not kill little children or old men or women. Do not cut off the heads of palm trees or burn them. Do not cut down fruit trees. Do not slaughter livestock except for food."<ref>{{cite book |last=Hashmi |first=Sohail H. |title=Islamic political ethics: civil society, pluralism, and conflict |publisher=Princeton University Press |location=Princeton, New Jersey |year=2002 |isbn=0-691-11310-6 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/islamicpolitical0000unse |page=211}}</ref> Islamic jurists have held that a prisoner should not be killed, as he "cannot be held responsible for mere acts of belligerency".<ref>{{cite book | last = McCoubrey | first = Hilaire | title = International Humanitarian Law | publisher = Ashgate | location =Aldershot, UK | year=1999 | isbn = 1-84014-012-7 |pages=8–13}}</ref> 
However, the prohibition against killing non-combatants is not necessarily absolute in Islamic Law. For example, in situations where an "enemy retreats inside fortifications and one-to-one combat is not an option", Islamic jurists have been unanimous as to the permissibility on the use of less discriminating weapons such as mangonels (a weapon for catapulting large stones) if required by military necessity but have differed with respect to the use of fire in such cases.<ref>{{cite book | last = al-Dawoody| first = Ahmed| title = Islamic Law and International Humanitarian Law | publisher = Faculty of Islamic Studies, University in Sarajevo, [[International Committee of the Red Cross]] | location =Sarajevo| year=2020 | isbn = 978-9958-622-86-1 |page=13}}</ref>

=== Codification of humanitarian norms ===
The most important antecedent of IHL is the current Armistice Agreement and Regularization of War, signed and ratified in 1820 between the authorities of the then Government of Great Colombia and the Chief of the Expeditionary Forces of the Spanish Crown, in the Venezuelan city of Santa Ana de Trujillo. This treaty was signed under the conflict of Independence, being the first of its kind in the West.

It was not until the second half of the 19th century, however, that a more systematic approach was initiated. In the United States, a German immigrant, [[Francis Lieber]], drew up a code of conduct in 1863, which came to be known as the [[Lieber Code]], for the [[Union Army]] during the [[American Civil War]]. The Lieber Code included the humane treatment of civilian populations in areas of conflict, and also forbade the execution of [[POWs]].

At the same time, the involvement during the [[Crimean War]] of a number of such individuals as [[Florence Nightingale]] and [[Henry Dunant]], a Genevese businessman who had worked with wounded soldiers at the [[Battle of Solferino]], led to more systematic efforts to prevent the suffering of war victims. Dunant wrote a book, which he titled ''[[A Memory of Solferino]]'', in which he described the horrors he had witnessed. His reports were so shocking that they led to the founding of the [[International Committee of the Red Cross]] (ICRC) in 1863, and the convening of a conference in Geneva in 1864, which drew up the [[First Geneva Convention|Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded in Armies in the Field]].<ref>{{cite book |first=Christopher |last=Greenwood |editor-last = Fleck |editor-first=Dieter |title=The Handbook of Humanitarian Law in Armed Conflicts |publisher=Oxford University Press USA |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-19-923250-5 |page = 22 }}</ref> 
  
The Law of Geneva is directly inspired by the [[Humanitarian principles#Humanity|principle of humanity]]. It relates to those who are not participating in the conflict, as well as to military personnel {{lang|fr|hors de combat}}. It provides the legal basis for [[Humanitarian protection|protection]] and [[humanitarian assistance]] carried out by impartial humanitarian organizations such as the ICRC.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dHV7fix7nLcC&q=international+humanitarian+law |title=Development and Principles of International Humanitarian Law |last=Pictet |first=Jean Simon |page=2 |date=September 30, 1985 |publisher=Martinus Nijhoff |isbn=9789024731992 |access-date=2016-11-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140226105111/http://www.google.com/books?id=dHV7fix7nLcC&printsec=frontcover&dq=international+humanitarian+law&lr=&source=gbs_summary_s&cad=0 |archive-date=2014-02-26 |url-status=live }}</ref> This focus can be found in the [[Geneva Conventions]].

== Geneva Conventions ==
{{Main|Geneva Conventions}}

[[Image:Original Geneva Conventions.jpg|thumb|The [[First Geneva Convention]] of 1864.]]
[[Image:Geneva Conventions 1864-1949.svg|thumb|Progression of Geneva Conventions from 1864 to 1949]]

The Geneva Conventions are the result of a process that developed in a number of stages between 1864 and 1949. It focused on the protection of civilians and those who can no longer fight in an armed conflict. As a result of World War II, all four conventions were revised, based on previous revisions and on some of the 1907 Hague Conventions, and readopted by the international community in 1949. Later conferences have added provisions prohibiting certain methods of warfare and addressing issues of civil wars.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=2016-03-08 |title=The Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocols |url=https://www.icrc.org/en/document/geneva-conventions-1949-additional-protocols |journal=ICRC}}</ref>

The first three Geneva Conventions were revised, expanded, and replaced, and the fourth one was added, in 1949.

* The Geneva Convention ''for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field'' was adopted in 1864. It was significantly revised and replaced by the 1906 version,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.icrc.org/applic/ihl/ihl.nsf/INTRO/180?OpenDocument |title=Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armies in the Field. Geneva, 6 July 1906 |publisher=[[International Committee of the Red Cross]] |access-date=July 20, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222210023/http://www.icrc.org/applic/ihl/ihl.nsf/INTRO/180?OpenDocument |archive-date=2014-02-22 |url-status=live }}</ref> the [[Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armies in the Field (1929)|1929 version]], and later the [[First Geneva Convention]] of 1949.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://cil.nus.edu.sg/1949/1949-geneva-convention-i-for-the-amelioration-of-the-condition-of-the-wounded-and-sick-in-armed-forces-in-the-field/ |title=1949 Geneva Convention (I) for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field |access-date=2013-08-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140221161712/http://cil.nus.edu.sg/1949/1949-geneva-convention-i-for-the-amelioration-of-the-condition-of-the-wounded-and-sick-in-armed-forces-in-the-field/ |archive-date=2014-02-21 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* The Geneva Convention ''for the Amelioration of the Condition of Wounded, Sick and Shipwrecked Members of Armed Forces at Sea'' was adopted in 1906.<ref>{{cite book |title=The International Committee of the Red Cross: A Neutral Humanitarian Actor |date=June 17, 2007 |author=David P. Forsythe |page=43 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-0-415-34151-6 }}</ref> It was significantly revised and replaced by the [[Second Geneva Convention]] of 1949.
* The [[Geneva Convention on Prisoners of War (1929)|Geneva Convention ''relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War'' was adopted in 1929]]. It was significantly revised and replaced by the [[Third Geneva Convention]] of 1949.
* The [[Fourth Geneva Convention]] ''relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War'' was adopted in 1949.

There are three additional amendment protocols to the Geneva Convention:

# [[Protocol I]] (1977): Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts. As of 12 January 2007 it had been ratified by 167 countries.
# [[Protocol II]] (1977): Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of Non-International Armed Conflicts. As of 12 January 2007 it had been ratified by 163 countries.
# [[Protocol III]] (2005): Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Adoption of an Additional Distinctive Emblem. As of June 2007 it had been ratified by seventeen countries and signed but not yet ratified by an additional 68.

The Geneva Conventions of 1949 may be seen, therefore, as the result of a process which began in 1864. Today they have "achieved universal participation with 194 parties". This means that they apply to almost any international armed conflict.<ref>{{cite book |first=Christopher |last=Greenwood |editor-last = Fleck |editor-first=Dieter |title=The Handbook of Humanitarian Law in Armed Conflicts |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=USA |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-19-923250-5 |pages = 27–28}}</ref> The Additional Protocols, however, have yet to achieve near-universal acceptance, since the United States and several other significant military powers (like Iran, Israel, India and Pakistan) are currently not parties to them.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.gsdrc.org/go/topic-guides/ilfha |title=International legal frameworks for humanitarian action |website=GSDRC |access-date=2013-05-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130718155209/http://www.gsdrc.org/go/topic-guides/ilfha |archive-date=2013-07-18 |url-status=live }}</ref>

== Historical convergence between IHL and the laws of war ==
With the adoption of the [[Geneva Conventions#Protocols|1977 Additional Protocols to the Geneva Conventions]], the two strains of law began to converge, although provisions focusing on humanity could already be found in the Hague law (i.e. the protection of certain prisoners of war and civilians in occupied territories). The 1977 Additional Protocols, relating to the protection of victims in both international and internal conflict, not only incorporated aspects of both the Law of The Hague and the Law of Geneva, but also important human rights provisions.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.icrc.org/Web/Eng/siteeng0.nsf/htmlall/p0793/$File/ICRC_002_0793.PDF!Open |title=Kalshoven+Zegveld (2001) p. 34. |access-date=2008-03-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071008210214/http://www.icrc.org/Web/Eng/siteeng0.nsf/htmlall/p0793/$File/ICRC_002_0793.PDF!Open |archive-date=2007-10-08 |url-status=live }}</ref>

== Basic rules of IHL ==
# [[Protected persons]] are those ''[[hors de combat]]'' (outside of combat) or not taking part in hostilities in a situation of armed conflict, and shall be protected in all circumstances. Excluding from the list of protected persons in international armed conflict are civilians under their own national authority and [[neutral country|neutral]] citizens living in [[belligerent]] territory and [[co-belligerence|co-belligerent]] persons as long their state of nationality maintains diplomatic relations with a belligerent power.<ref name="MHGN">{{cite web|url=https://guide-humanitarian-law.org/content/article/3/protected-persons/|title=The Practical Guide to Humanitarian Law: Protected Persons|publisher=[[Médecins Sans Frontières]]}}</ref>
# Protected persons who are wounded and sick shall be cared for and protected by the party to the conflict which has them in its power. The emblem of the "Red Cross", or of the "Red Crescent", or the "Red Crystal" shall be required to be respected as the sign of protection.
# Protected persons captured by a belligerent must be protected against acts of violence and reprisals. They shall have the right to correspond with their families and to receive relief.<ref name="MHGN"/>
# No protected person shall be subjected to [[torture]] or to [[cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment]].<ref name="MHGN"/>
# Parties to a conflict do not have an unlimited choice of methods and means of [[warfare]].
# Parties to a conflict shall at all times distinguish between enemy combatants and protected persons. Attacks shall be directed solely against [[legitimate military target]]s.<ref>{{cite book |author=de Preux |title=Basic rules of the Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols |edition=2nd |url=http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/p0365 |publisher=ICRC |location=Geneva |year=1988 |page=1 |archive-date=July 27, 2010 |access-date=March 10, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100727092015/http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/p0365 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Examples===
Well-known examples of such rules include the prohibition on attacking [[physician|doctors]] or [[ambulance]]s displaying a [[Emblems of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement|red cross]]. It is also prohibited to fire at a person or vehicle bearing a white flag, since that, being considered the flag of truce, indicates an intent to surrender or a desire to communicate. In either case, the persons protected by the Red Cross or the white flag are expected to maintain neutrality, and may not engage in warlike acts themselves; engaging in war activities under a white flag or a red cross is itself a violation of the laws of war.

These examples of the laws of war address:
* [[declarations of war]];{{efn|The [[UN Charter]] (1945) Article 2, and some other Articles in the charter, curtails the right of member states to declare war, as does the older and toothless [[Kellogg–Briand Pact]] of 1928 for those nations who ratified it, but used against Germany and Japan in the [[Nuremberg trials|Nuremberg]] and [[International Military Tribunal for the Far East|Tokyo Trials]] respectively.}}
* acceptance of surrender;
* the treatment of prisoners of war;
* the avoidance of atrocities;
* the prohibition on deliberately attacking non-combatants; and
* the prohibition of certain inhumane [[weapons]].

It is a violation of the laws of war to engage in combat without meeting certain requirements, among them the wearing of a distinctive [[uniform]] or other easily identifiable badge, and the carrying of weapons openly. Impersonating soldiers of the other side by wearing the enemy's uniform is allowed, though fighting in that uniform is unlawful [[perfidy]], as is the taking of [[hostage]]s.

== Later additions ==
International humanitarian law now includes several treaties that outlaw specific weapons. These conventions were created largely because these weapons cause deaths and injuries long after conflicts have ended. Unexploded [[land mines]] have caused up to 7,000 deaths a year; unexploded bombs, particularly from [[cluster bombs]] that scatter many small "bomblets", have also killed many. An estimated 98% of the victims are civilian; farmers tilling their fields and children who find these explosives have been common victims. For these reasons, the following conventions have been adopted:

* The [[Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons Which May Be Deemed to Be Excessively Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects]] (1980), which prohibits weapons that produce non-detectable fragments, restricts (but does not eliminate) the use of [[Land mine|mine]]s and [[booby-traps]], prohibits attacking civilians with [[incendiary weapons]], prohibits [[Protocol on Blinding Laser Weapons|blinding laser weapons]], and requires the warring parties to clear unexploded ordnance at the end of hostilities;{{efn|As of December 2012, 109 states have ratified this convention or some of its provisions.}}
* The Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction (1997), also called the [[Ottawa Treaty]] or the Mine Ban Treaty, which completely bans the stockpiling (except to a limited degree, for training purposes) and use of all [[Anti-personnel mine|anti-personnel]] [[land mines]];{{efn|By late 2012, 160 states had ratified it.}}
* The [[Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict]] (2000), an amendment to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), which forbids the enlistment of anyone under the age of eighteen for armed conflict;{{efn|It has, as of December 2012, been ratified by 150 states.}} and
* The [[Convention on Cluster Munitions]] (2008), which prohibits the use of bombs that scatter bomblets, many of which do not explode and remain dangerous long after a conflict has ended.{{efn|By December 2012, 77 states had ratified it.}}

== International Committee of the Red Cross ==
{{Main|International Committee of the Red Cross}}

[[File:Emblem of the ICRC.svg|Emblem of the ICRC|thumb]]

The ICRC is the only institution explicitly named under international humanitarian law as a controlling authority. The legal mandate of the ICRC stems from the four Geneva Conventions of 1949, as well as from its own Statutes.

{{quote|The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is an impartial, neutral, and independent organization whose exclusively humanitarian mission is to protect the lives and dignity of victims of war and internal violence and to provide them with assistance.|Mission of ICRC}}

== Violations and punishment ==
During conflict, [[punishment]] for violating the laws of war may consist of a specific, deliberate and limited violation of the laws of war in [[reprisal]]—although it has been argued that reprisals against civilians are illegal under customary international law.<ref>{{cite news |last1=School |first1=Stanford Law |title=The Illegality of Targeting Civilians by Way of Belligerent Reprisal: Implications for U.S. Nuclear Doctrine |url=https://law.stanford.edu/2021/05/10/the-illegality-of-targeting-civilians-by-way-of-belligerent-reprisal-implications-for-u-s-nuclear-doctrine/ |access-date=17 April 2025 |work=Stanford Law School |date=10 May 2021 |language=en}}</ref>

Combatants who break specific provisions of the laws of war lose the protections and status afforded to them as [[prisoners of war]], but only after facing a "competent tribunal".<ref>[[Third Geneva Convention|GC III]] Art 5.</ref> At that point, they become [[unlawful combatant]]s, but must still be "treated with humanity and, in case of trial, shall not be deprived of the [[Right to a fair trial|rights of fair and regular trial]]", because they are still covered by [[Fourth Geneva Convention#Article 5: Derogations|GC IV, Article 5]].

[[Espionage|Spies]] and [[terrorism|terrorists]] are only protected by the laws of war if the "power" which holds them is in a state of armed conflict or war, and until they are found to be an "unlawful combatant". Depending on the circumstances, they may be subject to civilian law or a military tribunal for their acts. In practice, they have often have been subjected to [[torture]] and execution. The laws of war neither approve nor condemn such acts, which fall outside their scope.{{Citation needed|date=September 2012}} Spies may only be punished following a trial; if captured after rejoining their own army, they must be treated as prisoners of war.<ref>http://www.icrc.org/ihl.nsf/full/195 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120911164351/http://www.icrc.org/ihl.nsf/FULL/195 |date=2012-09-11 }} Articles 30 and 31</ref> Suspected terrorists who are captured during an armed conflict, without having participated in the hostilities, may be detained only in accordance with the [[Fourth Geneva Convention|GC IV]], and are entitled to a regular trial.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.state.gov/bureaus-offices/under-secretary-for-public-diplomacy-and-public-affairs/bureau-of-global-public-affairs/foreign-press-centers/|title=Foreign Press Centers|website=United States Department of State|language=en-US|access-date=2019-08-27}}</ref> Countries that have signed the ''[[UN Convention Against Torture]]'' have committed themselves not to use torture on anyone for any reason.

After a conflict has ended, persons who have committed any breach of the laws of war, and especially atrocities, may be held individually accountable for [[war crimes]] through process of [[law]].

Reparation for victims of serious violations of International Humanitarian Law acknowledges the suffering endured by individuals and communities and seeks to provide a form of redress for the harms inflicted upon them. The evolving legal landscape, notably through the mechanisms of international courts like the ICC, has reinforced the notion that victims of war crimes and other serious breaches of International Humanitarian Law have a recognized right to seek reparations. These reparations can take various forms, including restitution, compensation, rehabilitation, satisfaction, and guarantees of non-repetition, aimed at addressing the physical, psychological, and material damage suffered by victims.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-06-16 |title=Reparation for victims of serious violations of international humanitarian law: New developments |url=http://international-review.icrc.org/articles/reparation-for-victims-of-serious-violations-of-ihl-new-developments-919 |access-date=2024-03-31 |website=International Review of the Red Cross |language=en}}</ref>

== Key provisions and principles applicable to civilians ==
The Fourth Geneva Convention focuses on the civilian population. The two additional protocols adopted in 1977 extend and strengthen civilian protection in international (AP I) and non-international (AP II) armed conflict: for example, by introducing the prohibition of direct attacks against civilians. A "civilian" is defined as "any person not belonging to the armed forces", including non-nationals and refugees.<ref>AP I, Art 50(1).</ref> However, it is accepted that operations may cause civilian casualties. Luis Moreno Ocampo, chief prosecutor of the international criminal court, wrote in 2006: "International humanitarian law and the [[Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court|Rome statute]] permit belligerents to carry out proportionate attacks against military objectives, even when it is known that some civilian deaths or injuries will occur. A crime occurs if there is an intentional attack directed against civilians (principle of distinction) ... or an attack is launched on a military objective in the knowledge that the incidental civilian injuries would be clearly excessive in relation to the anticipated military advantage (principle of proportionality)."<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/jul/20/israelis-die-defend-british-media |title=Cited in an article in The Guardian newspaper |website=[[TheGuardian.com]] |date=July 20, 2014 |access-date=2016-12-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170807021712/https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/jul/20/israelis-die-defend-british-media |archive-date=2017-08-07 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The provisions and principles of IHL which seek to protect civilians are:<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://gsdrc.org/topic-guides/international-legal-frameworks-for-humanitarian-action/concepts/overview-of-international-humanitarian-law/|title=Overview of international humanitarian law|website=GSDRC|date=January 2013 |language=en-US|access-date=2019-08-27}}</ref>

=== IHL provisions and principles protecting civilians ===

==== Principle of distinction ====
The principle of [[Distinction (law)|distinction]] protects civilian population and civilian objects from the effects of military operations. It requires parties to an armed conflict to distinguish at all times, and under all circumstances, between combatants and military objectives on the one hand, and civilians and civilian objects on the other; and only to target the former. It also provides that civilians lose such protection should they take a direct part in hostilities.<ref>AP I, Arts 48, 51-52, 57; AP II, 13-16.</ref> The principle of distinction has also been found by the ICRC to be reflected in state practice; it is therefore an established norm of customary international law in both international and non-international armed conflicts.<ref>ICRC, 2005b, vol 1.</ref>

==== Necessity and proportionality ====
Necessity and [[Proportionality (international humanitarian law)|proportionality]] are established principles in humanitarian law. Under IHL, a belligerent may apply only the amount and kind of force necessary to defeat the enemy. Further, attacks on military objects must not cause loss of civilian life considered excessive in relation to the direct military advantage anticipated.<ref>AP I, Arts 35, 51(5).</ref> Every feasible precaution must be taken by commanders to avoid civilian casualties.<ref>AP 1, Arts 57, 58.</ref> The principle of proportionality has also been found by the ICRC to form part of customary international law in international and non-international armed conflicts.<ref name="ICRC, 2005b, vol. 1">ICRC, 2005b, vol. 1.</ref>

==== Principle of humane treatment ====
The principle of humane treatment requires that civilians be treated humanely at all times.<ref>GCIV, Art 27.</ref> Common Article 3 of the GCs prohibits violence to life and person (including cruel treatment and torture), the taking of hostages, humiliating and degrading treatment, and execution without regular trial against non-combatants, including persons ''[[hors de combat]]'' (wounded, sick and shipwrecked). Civilians are entitled to respect for their physical and mental integrity, their honour, family rights, religious convictions and practices, and their manners and customs.<ref name="API, Art 751">API, Art 75(1).</ref> This principle of humane treatment has been affirmed by the ICRC as a norm of customary international law, applicable in both international and non-international armed conflicts.<ref name="ICRC, 2005b, vol. 1"/>

==== Principle of non-discrimination ====
The principle of non-discrimination is a core principle of IHL. Adverse distinction based on race, sex, nationality, religious belief or political opinion is prohibited in the treatment of prisoners of war,<ref>GCIII, Art 16.</ref> civilians,<ref>GCIV, Art 13, common Article 3.</ref> and persons ''hors de combat''.<ref>Common Article 3.</ref> All protected persons shall be treated with the same consideration by parties to the conflict, without distinction based on race, religion, sex or political opinion.<ref>Common article 3, GCIV, Art 27.</ref> Each and every person affected by armed conflict is entitled to his fundamental rights and guarantees, without discrimination.<ref name="API, Art 751"/> The prohibition against adverse distinction is also considered by the ICRC to form part of customary international law in international and non-international armed conflict.<ref name="ICRC, 2005b, vol. 1"/>

==== Women and children ====
Women must be protected from rape, [[forced prostitution]] and from any form of indecent assault. Children under the age of eighteen must not be permitted to take part in hostilities, cannot be evacuated to a foreign country by a country other than theirs, except temporarily due to a compelling threat to their health and safety, and if orphaned or separated from their families, must be maintained and receive an education.<ref>GCIV, Arts 24, 27; API, Arts 76-78; APII, Art 4(3).</ref>

==== Resolution 2664 ====
The [[European Union]] has made significant changes to its sanctions policy to better safeguard humanitarian efforts, in response to the [[United Nations Security Council resolution#:~:text=A United Nations Security Council,of international peace and security".|United Nations Security Council resolution]] 2664 (2022).<ref>{{UN doc |docid=S/RES/2664 (2022) |body=S |type=R |resolution_number=2664 |title=General issues relating to sanctions |page= |pages= |date=9 December 2022 |meeting=9214 |accessdate=6 September 2024}}</ref> This includes incorporating humanitarian exemptions into EU sanctions regimes, ensuring that aid can reach those in need without legal barriers. This shift has led to the inclusion of comprehensive humanitarian exemptions in new sanctions frameworks for Niger and Sudan, and the amendment of existing regimes to incorporate similar exemptions, thereby covering key humanitarian contexts in countries like Lebanon, Myanmar, and Venezuela.<ref>{{Cite press release|url=https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2024/02/19/humanitarian-action-eu-introduces-further-exception-to-sanctions/|title=Humanitarian action: EU introduces further exception to sanctions |date=19 February 2024 |agency=Council of the European Union}}</ref>

== Sex and culture ==
=== Sex ===
IHL emphasises, in various provisions in the GCs and APs, the concept of formal equality and non-discrimination. Protections should be provided "without any adverse distinction founded on sex". For example, with regard to female prisoners of war, women are required to receive treatment "as favourable as that granted to men".<ref>GCIII, Arts 14, 16.</ref> In addition to claims of formal equality, IHL mandates special protections to women, providing female prisoners of war with separate dormitories from men, for example,<ref>GCIII, Art 25.</ref> and prohibiting sexual [[violence against women]].<ref>GCIV, Art27; API, Art 76(2); APII, Art 4(2).</ref>

The reality of women's and men's lived experiences of conflict has highlighted some of the gender limitations of IHL. Feminist critics have challenged IHL's focus on male combatants and its relegation of women to the status of victims, and its granting them legitimacy almost exclusively as child-rearers. A study of the 42 provisions relating to women within the Geneva Conventions and the Additional Protocols found that almost half address women who are expectant or nursing mothers.<ref>Gardam and Jarvis, cited in Durham and O'Bryne, 2010.</ref>{{full citation needed|date=March 2025}} Others have argued that the issue of sexual violence against men in conflict has not yet received the attention it deserves.<ref>Lewis, cited in Durham and O'Bryne, 2010.</ref>{{full citation needed|date=March 2025}}

Soft-law instruments have been relied on to supplement the protection of women in armed conflict:

* [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 1888|UN Security Council Resolutions 1888]] and [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 1889|1889 (2009)]], which aim to enhance the protection of women and children against sexual violations in armed conflict; and
* [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325|Resolution 1325]], which aims to improve the participation of women in post-conflict peacebuilding.

Read together with other legal mechanisms, in particular the UN [[Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women]] (CEDAW), these can enhance interpretation and implementation of IHL.

In addition, international criminal tribunals (like the [[International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia|International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia]] and [[International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda|Rwanda]]) and mixed tribunals (like the [[Special Court for Sierra Leone]]) have contributed to expanding the scope of definitions of sexual violence and rape in conflict. They have effectively prosecuted sexual and gender-based crimes committed during armed conflict. There is now well-established jurisprudence on gender-based crimes. Nonetheless, there remains an urgent need to further develop constructions of gender within international humanitarian law.<ref>See Barrow, 2010.</ref>{{full citation needed|date=March 2025}}

=== Culture===
IHL has generally not been subject to the same debates and criticisms of "[[cultural relativism]]" as have [[international human rights law|international human rights]]. Although the modern codification of IHL in the Geneva Conventions and the Additional Protocols is relatively new, and European in name, the core concepts are not new, and laws relating to warfare can be found in all cultures. Indeed, non-Western participants played important roles in the development of this area of law at the global level as early as the 1907 Second Hague Conference, and have continued to do so since.<ref>Mitchell, Ryan Martínez. "China's participation in the second Hague conference and the concept of equal sovereignty in international law." Asian Journal of International Law 11, no. 2 (2021): 351-371.</ref>

ICRC studies on the Middle East, Somalia, Latin America, and the Pacific, for example have found that there are traditional and long-standing practices in various cultures that preceded, but are generally consistent with, modern IHL. It is important to respect local and cultural practices that are in line with IHL. Relying on these links and on local practices can help to [[raising awareness|promote awareness]] of and adherence to IHL principles among local groups and communities.{{citation needed|date=June 2013}}

Durham{{who|date=March 2025}} cautions that, although traditional practices and IHL legal norms are largely compatible, it is important not to assume perfect alignment. There are areas in which legal norms and cultural practices clash. Violence against women, for example, is frequently legitimized by arguments from culture, and yet is prohibited in IHL and other international law. In such cases, it is important to ensure that IHL is not negatively affected.

==Criticism==
{{see also||Third World approaches to international law}}
[[File:RIAN archive 216 The Volkovo cemetery.jpg|thumb|The [[siege of Leningrad]] (pictured) killed hundreds of thousands of civilians, but was ruled legal by a United States military court.<ref name=Jordash>{{cite journal |last1=Jordash |first1=Wayne |last2=Murdoch |first2=Catriona |last3=Holmes |first3=Joe |title=Strategies for Prosecuting Mass Starvation |journal=Journal of International Criminal Justice |date= 2019 |volume=17 |issue=4 |pages=849–879 |doi=10.1093/jicj/mqz044 |url=https://academic.oup.com/jicj/article/17/4/849/5652244|url-access=subscription }}</ref> The [[1949 Geneva Convention]] "accepted the [[starvation (crime)|legality of starvation]] as a weapon of war in principle".{{sfn|Mulder|van Dijk|2021|pp=383–384}}]]
There is academic debate whether IHL, which is formally constructed as a system that prohibits certain acts, can also facilitate violence against civilians when belligerents argue that their attacks are compliant with IHL.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Lieblich |first1=Eliav |title=The Facilitative Function of Jus in Bello |journal=European Journal of International Law |date=24 May 2019 |volume=30 |issue=1 |pages=321–340 |doi=10.1093/ejil/chz015 |url=https://academic.oup.com/ejil/article/30/1/321/5498085#136044965 |issn=0938-5428}}</ref> For example, a number of legal scholars have argued that Israel used permissive interpretations of IHL to justify large-scale violence against Palestinian civilians during the [[Gaza war]].<ref>{{cite report |last1=[[Luigi Daniele]] [[Nicola Perugini]] [[Francesca Albanese]] |title=Humanitarian Camouflage: Israel Rewrites the Laws of War to Legitimize Genocide in Gaza |url=https://www.palestine-studies.org/en/node/1656283 |publisher=Institute for Palestine Studies |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Sultany |first1=Nimer |title=A Threshold Crossed: On Genocidal Intent and the Duty to Prevent Genocide in Palestine |journal=Journal of Genocide Research |date=9 May 2024 |pages=1–26 |doi=10.1080/14623528.2024.2351261|doi-access=free }}</ref> 

The foreseeable killing of large numbers of citizens could be considered compliant with IHL, which relies on the [[doctrine of double effect]] allowing civilian harm as [[collateral damage]] of military activity. The effect on civilians is the same as if they are killed in deliberate massacres, and permissive interpretations of IHL move towards the de-civilianization of entire populations through designation as combanants or [[human shields]]. Historian [[A. Dirk Moses]] suggests that civilian killing in war and genocide could be "a distinction without a difference".<ref>{{cite web |last1=School |first1=Stanford Law |title=Proportionality, Double Effects, and the Innocent Bystander Problem in War |url=https://law.stanford.edu/publications/proportionality-double-effects-and-the-innocent-bystander-problem-in-war/#:~:text=It%20argues%20that%20the%20Doctrine,or%20her%20right%20to%20life. |website=Stanford Law School |access-date=5 March 2025 |language=en |date=26 August 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Moses |first1=A. Dirk |title=2 Genocide as a Category Mistake: Permanent Security and Mass Violence Against Civilians |journal=Genocidal Violence: Concepts, Forms, Impact |date=6 November 2023 |pages=15–38 |doi=10.1515/9783110781328-002 |publisher=De Gruyter Oldenbourg |isbn=978-3-11-078132-8 |language=en|doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Crawford |first1=Neta C. |title=Accountability for Killing: Moral Responsibility for Collateral Damage in America's Post-9/11 Wars |date=26 November 2013 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-998172-4 |pages=0 |url=https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199981724.003.0004 |chapter=Norms in Tension: Military Necessity, Proportionality, and Double Effect|doi=10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199981724.003.0004 }}</ref> To a large degree IHL was created by Western powers to further their own interests,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kinsella |first1=Helen M |last2=Mantilla |first2=Giovanni |title=Contestation before Compliance: History, Politics, and Power in International Humanitarian Law |journal=International Studies Quarterly |date=1 September 2020 |volume=64 |issue=3 |pages=649–656 |doi=10.1093/isq/sqaa032}}</ref> and it has long featured [[double standards]] on legally allowed violence.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Killingsworth |first1=Matt |title=International Humanitarian Law: Necessity, Distinction and the 'Standard of Civilisation' |journal=Journal of International Humanitarian Legal Studies |date=9 June 2023 |volume=14 |issue=2 |pages=250–273 |doi=10.1163/18781527-bja10062 |url=https://brill.com/view/journals/ihls/14/2/article-p250_005.xml |issn=1878-1373|url-access=subscription }}</ref> However, it has also been cited by critics of states engaged in colonial violence favoring a more consistent approach to civilian protection.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Szabla |first1=Christopher |title=Civilising Violence: International Law and Colonial War in the British Empire, 1850–1900 |journal=Journal of the History of International Law / Revue d'histoire du droit international |date=1 February 2023 |volume=25 |issue=1 |pages=70–104 |doi=10.1163/15718050-bja10081 |url=https://brill.com/view/journals/jhil/25/1/article-p70_3.xml?language=en |issn=1388-199X}}</ref>

== Notes ==
{{Notelist}}

== References ==
=== Citations ===
{{Reflist|30em}}

=== Sources ===
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |author1=Carey, John |author2=Dunlap, William |title=International Humanitarian Law: Origins (International Humanitarian Law) (International Humanitarian Law) |publisher=Transnational Pub |location=Dobbs Ferry, N.Y |year=2003 |isbn=1-57105-264-X }}
* {{cite book |author=Gardam, Judith Gail |title=Humanitarian Law (The Library of Essays in International Law) |publisher=Ashgate Pub Ltd |year=1999 |isbn=1-84014-400-9 }}
* {{cite book |author=Fleck, Dieter |title=The Handbook of International Humanitarian Law. Second Edition  |publisher=Oxford University Press, USA |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-19-923250-5 }}
* {{cite book |author=Forsythe, David P. |title=The humanitarians: the International Committee of the Red Cross |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Cambridge, UK |year=2005 |isbn=0-521-84828-8 }}
* {{cite web |last=Heider |first=Huma |title=International Legal Framework for Humanitarian Action |url=http://www.gsdrc.org/go/topic-guides/ilfha |publisher=GSDRC/ DFiD |access-date=13 May 2013 |archive-date=July 18, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130718155209/http://www.gsdrc.org/go/topic-guides/ilfha |url-status=dead }}
* {{cite book |author=Mendis, Chinthaka |editor=Jayawardena, Hemamal |title=Application of International Humanitarian Law to United Nations Forces|publisher=Zeilan Press |location=USA |year=2007 |page=108 |isbn=978-0-9793624-3-9  }}
* {{cite book |last = McCoubrey |first = Hilaire | title = International Humanitarian Law | publisher = Ashgate Publishing | location = Aldershot, UK |year=1999 |isbn = 1-84014-012-7 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Mulder|first1=Nicholas |first2= Boyd |last2=van Dijk |title=Contingency in International Law: On the Possibility of Different Legal Histories |date=2021 |publisher=Oxford University Press |pages=370– |language=en |chapter=Why Did Starvation Not Become the Paradigmatic War Crime in International Law?|isbn=9780192898036}}
* {{cite book |last = Pictet |first = Jean |title = Humanitarian law and the protection of war victims |publisher=Sijthoff |location=Leyden |year=1975 |isbn = 90-286-0305-0 }}
* [[Jean Pictet|Pictet, Jean]] (1985). Development and Principles of International Humanitarian Law. Dordrecht: Martinus Nijhoff. {{ISBN|90-247-3199-2}}.
* {{cite book |author=UNESCO Staff |title=International Dimensions of Humanitarian Law |publisher=Springer |location=Berlin |year=1997 |isbn=92-3-102371-3 }}
{{refend}}

== Further reading ==
*{{cite book |last1=Clapham |first1=Andrew |last2=Gaeta |first2=Paola |last3=Haeck |first3=Tom |last4=Priddy |first4=Alice |title=The Oxford Handbook of International Law in Armed Conflict |date=2014 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-955969-5 |language=en}}
*{{cite book |last1=Crawford |first1=Emily |last2=Pert |first2=Alison |title=International Humanitarian Law |date=2020 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-108-57514-0 |language=en}}
*{{cite book |last1=Crowe |first1=Jonathan |last2=Weston-Scheuber |first2=Kylie |title=Principles of International Humanitarian Law |date=2013 |publisher=Edward Elgar Publishing |isbn=978-1-78100-273-5 |language=en}}
*{{cite book |last1=Fleck |first1=Dieter |title=The Handbook of International Humanitarian Law |date=2021 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-258719-0 |language=en}}
*{{cite book |last1=Kalshoven |first1=Frits |last2=Zegveld |first2=Liesbeth |title=Constraints on the Waging of War: An Introduction to International Humanitarian Law |date=2011 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-139-49969-9 |language=en}}
*{{cite book |last1=Solis |first1=Gary D. |title=The Law of Armed Conflict: International Humanitarian Law in War |date=2021 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-108-83163-5 |language=en}}
*{{cite book |last1=Thürer |first1=Daniel |title=International Humanitarian Law: Theory, Practice, Context |date=2011 |publisher=Martinus Nijhoff Publishers |isbn=978-90-04-17910-3 |language=en}}

== External links ==
{{Library resources box|by=no|onlinebooks=no|about=yes|wikititle=international humanitarian law}}
* [https://ihl-databases.icrc.org/customary-ihl/eng/docs/home Customary IHL Database], an updated version of customary international humanitarian law study by the [[International Committee of the Red Cross]] (ICRC), originally published by [[Cambridge University Press]].
** "[http://www.icrc.org/eng/resources/documents/audiovisuals/video/2014/rules-of-war.htm Rules of war (in a nutshell)]" &mdash; short video  (4:43 in length) from the ICRC
** [http://www.icrc.org/ihl Treaties, States Parties and Commentaries] database from the ICRC
* [http://www.rulac.org/ Official website] of the [[Rule of Law in Armed Conflicts Project]], an initiative of the [[Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights]]
* [https://www.peacepalacelibrary.nl/research-guides/war-and-peace/international-humanitarian-law/ Research Guide: International Humanitarian Law] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170412145234/https://www.peacepalacelibrary.nl/research-guides/war-and-peace/international-humanitarian-law/ |date=April 12, 2017 }}, from the [[Peace Palace Library]]

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