Questions concerning declaration of war, acceptance of surrender, the treatment of PoWs, military necessity, distinction (i.e. international humanitarian law governing the legal use of force in an armed conflict, to distinguish between combatants and civilians), proportionality, and the prohibition of certain weapons. It is distinct from belligerents' domestic law, which may provide additional legal limits to the conduct or justification of war.
Questions tagged [laws-of-war]
90 questions
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4 answers
2022: Is Ukraine at war with Russia?
What exactly needs to happen in order for these two countries to be at war? Is it enough that one of the two sides make a declaration of war?
gatorback
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Do the laws of war cover misinformation and psychological warfare?
On April 22nd 2022, the state-owned Rossiya 1 TV channel (which is widely seen as a Kremlin mouthpiece) reported that British prime minister Boris Johnson had "threatened to carry out a nuclear strike against Russia, if needed, without consulting…
curiouser
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Were this character's actions legal in 'SAS: Rogue Heroes'?
In Episode 3 of "SAS: Rogue Heroes", L Detachment attack some Axis airfields in North Africa. The stated intent of the mission is to sabotage planes, trucks, etc., with explosives.
During this mission, the (fictionalised) Paddy Mayne and others gun…
Roger Lipscombe
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Which country's laws take precedence in a war?
Let's say the speed limit in country A is 110 km/h, and in country B it is 100 km/h. One day the two go to war, and country A conquers half of country B, but the war is still ongoing. For a person who lives in the conquered half of country B, which…
Allure
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Striking infrastructure sites, what would be considered as a war crime?
During the Russo-Ukrainian war I saw that strikes on Ukrainian power stations were labeled as war crimes. Is that so? After all, electricity is a blood of industry, by disabling it you may cripple weapon production/repair. Same goes to fuel depots,…
kreuzerkrieg
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Is it a war crime or act of war for a noncombatant "neutral" third party in a war to share information with either of the warring factions?
There is some discussion from fringe Twitter users that Ukraine's artillery strike on a Russian forward command post that killed Russian senior leadership was a war crime, based on an entirely incorrect reading of international warfare laws…
Nzall
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Is the United States in a state of war with Iran?
As of January 7, 2020, Is the US at war with Iran?
What is the litmus test to determine if the US is at war with Iran?
gatorback
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Does an act of Perfidy excuse no quarter?
Yesterday, Evilstan declared war on Ruritania. One of the Ruritanian units, let's call them the 1st Chasseurs manages to encircle a splinter troop of Evilstanian troops from the 2nd Armored Rifle Brigade. Encircled and rounded up, the commander of…
Trish
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Non Military Citizen's actions towards the enemy in the time of war
What are the laws around a non-military citizen taking action during the time of war? If that citizen were to support the enemy, would that be seen as a crime? What if the citizen were to attack the enemy with the consent of the military?
Scott
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