About the author(s):
Katharine Fortin is an Associate Professor at Utrecht University where she teaches IHL and IHRL. Before joining Utrecht University, she worked at the ICTY, ICC and Norton Rose Fulbright. She is the author of The Accountability of Armed Groups under Human Rights Law (Oxford University Press, 2017) which won the 2018 Lieber Prize. She has written widely about the framework of law that applies to armed groups in non-international armed conflicts and is one of the editors of the Armed Groups and International Law blog.
Many thanks to Sam Jackson for producing this consolidated news roundup to cover the period of the summer break. Some interesting stories here that you may have missed – take a look!
11th July – 17th July
Deraa rebels prepare to leave south Syria for rebel-held north
Syrian state flag to be raised in birthplace of 2011 uprising, residents say
Rebel attack in northwest Syria kills 27 government fighters: Observatory
Israel and Gaza militants agree to end fierce flare-up of fighting
Cameroon’s anglophone war, part 1: A rifle as the only way out
‘Whoever they met, they would cut and kill’: displaced Congolese recount rebel atrocities
Ethiopian rebel group declares ceasefire in wake of reforms
Ethnic groups challenge Tatmadaw chief’s Panglong opening speech
‘This massacre must stop’: Nicaraguan student rebels face militia assault
16000 displaced in guerrilla turf war in northeast Colombia: UN
FARC recruited more than 5000 minors during Colombia’s war: prosecution
Video: Armed groups using riots to target police, says senior Derry police officer
18th July – 24th July
Government forces close on last rebel group in southwestern Syria
From kidnap to torture, the database rigorously logging every Syrian atrocity
Syrian rebels ‘reach agreement’ with government to leave Quneitra
‘Forced to take arms’: Syria civil society turn to factions after US funding freeze
Israel, Hamas agree to de-escalation in Gaza: Hamas spokesman
An island in the Philippines hopes for peace but braces for war
Nicaragua: at least four dead as security forces retake rebel stronghold
Colombia: New Congress marks rebel group’s transition ‘from weapons to politics’, says UN
25th July – 31st July
The orphans of so-called Islamic State left in Libyan limbo
U.S. Diplomats Held Face-to-Face Talks With Taliban, Insurgents Say
Yemen’s rebels ‘attack’ Abu Dhabi airport using a drone
17 Malian civilians killed in clashes before presidential vote
Another Darfur armed group joins SRF umbrella
Attacks on aid workers rise in Central African Republic
Philippine Bombing Kills 10, Showing Insurgents Remain a Problem
Philippine rebels begin campaign for Muslims’ approval of autonomy law
Analysis: Trading Armed Struggle for Battle in the Market Place
Thai Police: Drug Traffickers have Links with Southern Insurgents
1st August – 7th August
Head of Syria research center killed in car bombing: newspaper, rebel group
Syria: Armed Group Recruiting Children in Camps
Syria: Turkey must stop serious violations by allied groups and its own forces in Afrin
Growing number of suicide attacks wreak havoc in eastern Afghanistan
Egypt’s military says 52 fighters killed in the Sinai Peninsula
Resolute Support invents new terms to obfuscate Taliban control
South Sudanese celebrate peace deal signed by Kiir and Machar
Will Congo Go to the Polls – Or Go to War?
Cameroon’s anglophone war, part 2: Inside the separatist conflict
Apparent attack in Venezuela highlights risk of drone strikes
ELN and EPL Conflict Intensifies at Colombian-Venezuela Border
8th August – 14th August
Wave of strikes hits Syria’s last rebel-held bastion
Crisis Group warns of new armed conflict in Oil Crescent region
Afghan candidates linked to armed groups disqualified from parliamentary polls: IECC
Libya: Tawergha IDP camp attacked by militia in danger of further attack and demolition
Palestinian official says Gaza armed groups will end round of fighting if Israel reciprocates
Dozens dead in Yemen as bus carrying children hit by airstrike
In Iraq, families linked to so-called Islamic State suffer for their relatives’ sins
India: Six people killed after ‘infiltration bid’ in Kashmir
Ebola: Tedros calls on armed groups to ensure access in Ituri, North Kivu
Ethiopian rebels declare ceasefire amid government reforms
South Sudan’s Kiir grants rebel leader Machar, others amnesty
More children released from South Sudanese armed groups – UNICEF
15th August – 21st August
Use of ‘killer robots’ in wars would breach law, say campaigners
What may unfold in Syria’s Idlib and why is a ‘bloodbath’ likely?
Syria rebel group accused of abduction, murder of key activist
Afghanistan’s Ghani declares Eid ceasefire with Taliban
Turkish Airstrike in Iraqi Territory Kills a Kurdish Militant Leader
Two Palestinian killed, 240 injured in clashes with IOF at Gaza border protest
Hamas decries Israeli decision to end ‘Black Friday’ probe
Opinion: The danger of a better-behaved Boko Haram
Nigeria: Boko Haram kills 19 villagers in Borno state
As killing rise, aid workers confront era of growing risk
Las turbas: Who are Nicaragua’s pro-government armed groups?
22nd August – 28th August
Syria: ISIS Holding Children Hostage
Suicide bomb attack kills two in eastern Afghanistan
Citing ISIS, Rahul says exclusion of people leads to insurgency
Boko Haram: Nigerian troops overpower insurgents, kill scores in Borno
DRC: Doctor stricken with Ebola in rebel stronghold
Central African Republic: Bar Amnesty for Atrocity Crimes
Report: Armed groups in C.A.R. want power-sharing deal, amnesty
Duque vows to use force to ‘dismantle’ paramilitary group that offered to demobilize voluntarily
29th August – 4th September
Syrian war: Understanding Idlib’s rebel factions
Syria’s war: Iran’s Zarif calls for Idlib to be ‘cleaned out’
Syria’s war: Deadly car bomb attack hits rebel-held Azaz
End of the line for Hay’et Tahrir al-Sham in Syria?
Libya’s chaos explained: ‘Everybody vying for a piece of the pie’
Iraq says no ‘armed groups’ received ballistic missiles from Iran
Rockets rain on Libya’s Tripoli as fresh fighting erupts
PLO official denounces Israeli court’s ruling legalizing settlement outpost as travesty
UN: Suspected war crimes in Yemen committed by all sides
Egypt: Security forces kill 5 armed men in the south
Libya: Armed groups vie for control in deadly Tripoli clashes
“I have lost everything”: In central Mali, rising extremism stirs inter-communal conflict
CAR armed groups conclude Russian-brokered peace meeting in Sudan
DRC rebel tells ICC he’s a revolutionary, not the ‘terminator’
South Sudan rebel leader Machar ‘refused’ to sign peace deal
Russia to treat killing of east Ukraine rebel leader as ‘international terrorism’
Rebel leader Alexander Zakharchenko killed in explosion in Ukraine
5th September – 10th September
Inside Israel’s Secret Program to Back Syrian Rebels
Shells hit Syria’s Idlib as rebels brace for assault
Armed groups agree to keep Tripoli ceasefire: U.N
‘11 dead’ after rockets hit Iranian Kurdish offices in Iraq
UN brokers ceasefire for Libya’s warring armed groups
Jalaluddin Haqqani, founder of prominent Afghan armed group, dies
Mali peace deal jeopardised by armed groups linked to terrorism, UN warns
Ethnic Armed Groups to Meet Myanmar Peace Commission For Talks in China
U.N. says six ex-rebel leaders have left Colombia reintegration zones
Leader of Colombia rebel dissident group killed, president says
Colombia’s president says ELN rebels may free more hostages soon
Separatists in Ukraine’s Donestsk Choose Zakharchenko Successor