Videos on IHL

Renowned defense expert Rupert Barrett-Taylor (Alan Turing Institute) challenged conventional views on conflict, showing how artificial intelligence, automation, and advanced technologies are reshaping the role of war itself.

On Thursday, 11 July 2024, Dustin A. Lewis (HLS PILAC) delivered this joint DILEMA-HILAC lecture, both online and at the Asser Institute in the Hague.

A growing number of States are reportedly preparing to use, or have already employed, in armed conflicts various techniques and methods derived from the science of artificial intelligence and associated fields. The range of applications spans diverse activities, functions, and authorities, including in such areas as the conduct of hostilities, detention, humanitarian services, and legal advice. These developments might amplify or transform existing concerns — and potentially raise new ones — regarding linkages concerning decision-making and judgment in war, accountability, and the legal regulation of armed conflict. Against that backdrop, this lecture sought to frame, identify, and evaluate certain key settled and open legal questions regarding natural and artificial intelligence in armed conflict.

The lecture was followed by a Q&A session moderated by Taylor Kate Woodcock (DILEMA Project / Asser Institute).

This lecture explores States’ existing obligations under international humanitarian law (IHL) and international human rights law (IHRL) in relation to the right to health in conflict, specifically focusing on how these regimes intersect in the context of the conflict in Gaza. The speakers addressed pressing issues such as the lack of menstrual hygiene products and lack of sanitation and proper aid contributing to disease, miscarriages, and trauma. The lecture also explored ways to enforce the international laws pertaining to Palestinian women’s health needs in the on-going crisis.

The UN General Assembly Resolution on the “Furtherance of remedy and reparation for aggression against Ukraine”, adopted on 14 November 2022, recognised that the Russian Federation must be held to account for its violations of international law in Ukraine, including by way of payment of reparation. In response, the Register of Damage for Ukraine was established on 17 May 2023 by the Council of Europe, 40 states, and the European Union. The Register (RD4U) serves as a record, in documentary form, of evidence and claims information on damage, loss or injury caused by the Russian Federation’s aggression against Ukraine, is the first step towards a compensation mechanism, which may include a claims commission and a compensation fund. It opened for the submission of claims on 2 April 2024 with respect to residential property damage, with further categories to be opened in due course. To provide an informed perspective on this critical issue, this Supranational Criminal Law Lecture takes stock of the developments surrounding the Register of Damage at this critical stage and tackles pertinent questions regarding a comprehensive approach to addressing the harm suffered by victims.

Since 19 November 2023, the Houthis, a non-state armed group based in Yemen, have carried out over 30 attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. The Red Sea, which connects the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea via the Suez Canal, is a vital trade route, with an estimated 12% of global trade passing through it each year. In response to the Houthis’ actions, a coalition of states, including the United States and United Kingdom, has carried out air and missile strikes against Houthi targets. This fast-developing situation raises numerous critical questions regarding regional and worldwide maritime security, as well as the relevance and application of international law. For example, are the Houthis’ attacks a novel threat for maritime security, or are there historical precedents? Furthermore, how should the Houthis’ actions, and the military responses, be assessed under international law? In addition, to what extent is the freedom of navigation, a fundamental principle of the international law of the sea, jeopardised by the Houthis’ actions?

In recent years, the United Nations has remarked on a worldwide surge in hate speech and incitement, considering them ‘a menace to democratic values, social stability and peace.’ In addition, hate speech and incitement are regularly recognised as early warning signs of the mass violation of human rights, and the perpetration of international crimes. This HILAC lecture, organised in collaboration with the University of Groningen and the IHCL Platform, critically discusses the opportunities and difficulties in identifying a holistic and integrated definition of hate speech and incitement in international law.

The field of warfare has seen significant technological advancements in recent years that reconfigure, challenge but also highlight the multiple functions performed by (international) legal frameworks. For example, the extensive use of drones in non-international armed conflicts and the development of AI-enabled defense systems warrant particular scrutiny. On 11th December, the Asser Institute hosted a hybrid HILAC discussion on “New technologies in modern warfare” between Stavros Pantazopoulos (Asser Institute), Rebecca Mignot-Mahdavi (SciencesPo Law School) and Wim Zwijnenburg (PAX).

On September 6, 2021, Rebecca Sutton presented the HILAC Lecture 'The Humanitarian Civilian. How the Idea of Distinction Circulates Within and Beyond International Humanitarian Law'. In international humanitarian law (IHL), the principle of distinction delineates the difference between the civilian and the combatant, and it safeguards the former from being intentionally targeted in armed conflicts. In this HILAC lecture, Dr Rebecca Sutton invited us to explore the way in which the idea of distinction circulates within, and beyond, IHL.

In the last two years, a number of initiatives regarding the use of ‘battlefield’ evidence have been drafted, or are in the process of being developed by various international, regional, and national entities. All of these initiatives point to the increasing focus on the collection, storage, use and transfer of evidence in conflict or violent contexts.

In this webinar, co-organised by the Asser Institute and the mandate of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms while Countering Terrorism, the phenomenon of battlefield evidence as a means to bring terrorism suspects to justice, as well as its international law dimensions, is discussed.

A discussion of real-life challenges presented by non-State actors in conflict settings, and how (and to what extent) we can address them to affect the resolution of practical and theoretical problems in the realm of IHL.

What does it mean to say that international humanitarian law (IHL) strikes a realistic and meaningful balance between military necessity and humanity, and that the law therefore 'accounts for' military necessity? Through real-life examples and careful analysis, this lecture will challenge received wisdom on the subject.

In this HILAC lecture, Prof. Michael Scharf, Prof. Milena Sterio and Prof. Paul R. William talk about the history of the conflict in Syria and demonstrate how and to what extent it affected international law. The speakers explore instances of use of force against ISIS and the allied strikes against the Syrian chemical weapons facilities. They show how Syria, as the speakers describe it, became a “laboratory for the rapid creation of new international law” since 2011.

In this interview Benjamin Charlier, legal adviser to the International Committee of the Red Cross in Geneva, touches on the challenges of prosecuting war crimes. Mr Charlier was a trainer during the ICL-TCL training (March 2019), a training for prosecutors and judges from francophone African countries on issues concerning the prosecution of international and transnational crimes. The training course aims to strengthen domestic legal capacities to improve the overall delivery of the international justice system,

The training course is co-organised by the Asser Institute, the International Nuremberg Principles Academy and the Antonio Cassese Initiative.

The following interview was conducted with Jérŏme de Hemptinne from the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights, during the ICL-TCL training on the prosecution of international and transnational crimes. Mr De Hemptinne raises issues concerning challenges of national magistrates when judging international war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The ICL-TCL training course is delivered in French and aims to strengthen the justice sector in francophone African countries facing challenges in the administration of justice. The training course is co-organised by the Asser Institute, the International Nuremberg Principles Academy and the Antonio Cassese Initiative.

The following interview was conducted with Bakayoko Ibourahema, advocate general at the Court of Appeal in Abidjan in Ivory Coast, and participant of the ICL-TCL training held at the T.M.C. Asser Instituut in The Hague in March 2019. Mr Ibourahema elaborates on the challenges national magistrates face when confronted with issues of International Criminal and Transnational Criminal Law, and the principle of complementarity.

The ICL-TCL training course aims to strengthen domestic legal capacities in francophone African countries facing challenges in the administration of justice. The training course is co-organised by the Asser Institute, the International Nuremberg Principles Academy and the Antonio Cassese Initiative. 

On Thursday 17 March 2016, Dr. Lyal S. Sunga, Head, Rule of Law Program, The Hague Institute for Global Justice and Visiting Professor, Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, provided a lecture in the context of the Hague Initiative for Law and Armed Conflict (HILAC), entitled: “Can International Law Meet the Challenges of Today’s Lawless Conflicts?”.

On Tuesday 25 November 2014, the book Applying International Humanitarian Law in Judicial and Quasi-Judicial Bodies: International and Domestic Aspects, edited by Derek Jinks, Jackson N. Maogoto and Solon Solomon and published by T.M.C. Asser Press, was launched at the T.M.C. Asser Instituut. The event was organised by the International Humanitarian and Criminal Law (IHCL) Platform hosted by the T.M.C. Asser Instituut, in cooperation with the Kalshoven-Gieskes Forum on International Humanitarian Law of the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies of Leiden University.

The evening was introduced by Dr. Christophe Paulussen, senior researcher International Humanitarian Law and International Criminal Law at the T.M.C. Asser Instituut and moderated by Dr. Robert Heinsch, Director of the Kalshoven-Gieskes Forum on International Humanitarian Law of Leiden University.

The book launch commenced with a brief description of the publication, provided by Mr. Solon Solomon, after which interventions followed by Judge Christopher Greenwood of the International Court of Justice, Judge Silvia Alejandra Fernández de Gurmendi of the International Criminal Court and Professor Cedric Ryngaert of Utrecht University. 

On 8 October 2014, Guido Acquaviva provided a lecture in the context of the Lebanon lecture series on war crimes.

On 24 September 2014, Geoff Roberts, from the Sabra Defence Team (Special Tribunal for Lebanon), provided a lecture in the context of the Lebanon lecture series on war crimes.

On 24 September 2014, Geoff Roberts, from the Sabra Defence Team (Special Tribunal for Lebanon), provided a lecture in the context of the Lebanon lecture series on war crimes.

On 24 September 2014, Geoff Roberts, from the Sabra Defence Team (Special Tribunal for Lebanon), provided a lecture in the context of the Lebanon lecture series on war crimes.