Weapons and the International Rule of Law

1 STUDIF rancoAngeliThe 39thRound Table on current issues of International Humanitarian Law (IHL),held in Sanremo, gathered together International experts, representatives ofgovernments and International organizations, academics and military officers toengage in open and fruitful discussions on the complex issues of Weapons andinternational rule of law. The Round Table provided an important opportunity to address the crucial topicof the protection of civilians which, now more than ever, constitutes a critical anddelicate issue in today s International and non- International armed actors, urban warfare, Weapons smuggling and autonomousarmaments are some of the issues currently at stake.

2 Considering the multipletransformations characterising the contemporary International scenario, it is anextremely difficult task for all the actors to implement IHL in this specific area. The proceedings of this Round Table, in line with the Sanremo Institute stradition, aim to further develop and contribute to the ongoing debate on Institute of Humanitarian Lawis an independent, non-profithumanitarian organization founded in 1970. Its headquarters are situated in VillaOrmond, Sanremo (Italy). Its main objective is the promotion and dissemination ofinternational humanitarian law, human rights, refugee law and migration law.

3 Thanks toits longstanding experience and its internationally acknowledged academic standards,the International Institute of Humanitarian Law is considered to be a centre ofexcellence and has developed close co-operation with the most important internationalorganizations. 33,00(u) Institute of Humanitarian Law Weapons AND THE International RULE OF LAWW eaponsand the InternationalRule of LawWeapons and the International Rule of LawFrancoAngeliLa passione per le conoscenzeInternational Institute of Humanitarian LawInternational Institute of Humanitarian LawInstitut International de Droit HumanitaireIstituto Internazionale di Diritto 17/05/17 17:31 Pagina 1 COPY 15,5X23 1-02-2016 8.

4 56 Pagina 1 FrancoAngeliInternational Institute of Humanitarian LawInstitut International de Droit HumanitaireIstituto Internazionale di Diritto UmanitarioWeaponsand the InternationalRule of Law39thRound Table on Current Issuesof International Humanitarian Law(Sanremo, 8th-10thSeptember 2016)Editor Baldwin De VidtsAssociated Editor Gian Luca BerutoDr. Baldwin De Vidts has served in various legal functions within FPS Foreign Affairs of Belgium and SHAPE, acting also as the Legal Adviser to the Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Mr. Gian Luca Beruto holds a Master s degree in International Political Science and is currently Assistant to the Secretary-General of the International Institute of Humanitarian Law.

5 The International Institute of Humanitarian Law would like to thank Ms Shirley Morren, librarian of the Institute, and Mr. Marco Basile, who were both involved in the painstaking task of proofreading and editing. Copyright 2017 by International Institute of Humanitarian Law. Stampa: Geca Industrie Grafiche, Via Monferrato 54, 20098 San Giuliano Milanese. 5 Table of Contents Preface Fausto Pocar p. 9 Opening session Opening address Alberto Biancheri 13 Opening address Vinicio Mati 15 Conference highlight Fausto Pocar 19 Conference highlight Christine Beerli 21 Keynote address Miguel Serpa Soares 27 I.

6 Setting the scene The regulations of Weapons under IHL William Boothby 37 The humanitarian perspective: from field to policy to law Peter Herby 42 6II. Legal reviews of new Weapons : process and procedures Discussion panel Legal reviews of new Weapons : process and procedures Marie Van Hoofstat p. 51 Legal reviews of new Weapons : process and procedures Richard Batty 58 Legal reviews of new Weapons : process and procedures Bakhtiyar Tuzmukhamedov 66 Legal reviews of new Weapons : process and procedures Gilles Giacca 73 III. Weapons reviews: current and future challenges Discussion panel Weapons reviews: current and future challenges Blaise Cathcart 85 Weapons reviews: current and future challenges Michael W.

7 Meier 93 Weapons reviews: current and future challenges Richard Moyes 101 IV. Case study: law enforcement by military personnel Discussion panel Case study: law enforcement by military personnel Juan Carlos Gomez Ramirez 111 Case study: law enforcement by military personnel Fran oise Hampson 115 Case study: law enforcement by military personnel Laurent Gisel 121 Case study: law enforcement by military personnel Claire Landais 136 7V. Waging contemporary conflicts: use of Weapons by non-state armed groups The role of International organizations, including the UN in supporting compliance, including by establishing fact-finding procedures Angela Kane p.

8 145 Measures to bring accountability Judge Chile Eboe-Osuji 154 Role of civil society in supporting compliance Katherine Kramer 163 VI. The use of explosive Weapons in populated areas in armed conflicts Un-/Acceptable Area Effects? Assessing Risk of Civilian Harm from the Use of Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas in Three Cases before the ICTY Maya Brehm 169 Good practices on restricting use of explosive Weapons in populated areas Sahr Muhammedally 188 Humanitarian consequences and challenges to IHL Thomas De Saint Maurice 191 VII.

9 Challenges from specific Weapons (pt. 1) Chemical Weapons : old and new concerns about their use in non- International conflicts Veronika Stromsikova 199 Outer space militarization: when late is too late Xavier Pasco 205 Nuclear Weapons : IHL considerations revisited, 20 years after the ICJ Advisory Opinion Camille Grand 210 8 Nuclear Weapons : IHL considerations revisited, 20 years after the ICJ Advisory Opinion Gro Nystuen p. 220 VIII. Challenges from specific Weapons (pt. 2) To what degree do the difficulties in tracing the author of the attack and assessing the extent of the effects remain a challenge for addressing the legal issues raised by cyber- Weapons ?

10 Marco Roscini 229 Unmanned maritime systems: does the increasing use of naval Weapons systems present a challenge for IHL? Wolff Heintschel Von Heinegg 235 IX. The Red Cross and Red Crescent Conference: what next? Compliance measures Valentin Zellweger 245 Strengthening IHL protecting persons deprived of their liberty: main achievements and next steps Helen Durham 249 Sexual and gender-based violence: joint action on prevention and response Helen Durham 253 Closing remarks Helen Durham 257 Closing remarks Fausto Pocar 259 Acronyms 263 Acknowledgements 271 9 Preface As technology relentlessly modifies and shapes today s civil societies at an ever-dynamic pace, the same applies to Weapons development and usage in the scenarios of conflict worldwide.