The 2019 ICRC so called ‘Challenges Report’ has identified the ‘proliferation of non?State armed groups’ (NSAG) as being a central feature of ‘the changing geopolitical landscape of the last decade’. It is undeniable that the existence of a multiplicity of NSAG in a given context creates serious challenges for humanitarian and aid organisations, not only …
The ICRC’s 2019 report on International Humanitarian Law on Challenges of Contemporary Armed Conflicts identifies the protection of persons living in territory under the control of armed groups as one of the main practical and legal challenges facing IHL, the ICRC and the broader international community today (pp.52-54). These challenges arise inter alia from the …
The title of this post is intentionally provocative and of course the answer is no: not all aspects of life during war revolve around war. In rebel territory, as in state-controlled territory, common criminality persists, traffic accidents occur and people have needs that are unrelated to the conflict. This raises the question of how ordinary …
Concomitant to the many contemporary non-international armed conflicts and the multiplication of non-State armed groups, a significant number of armed groups exercise de facto control over territory and persons living therein. Such control may take various forms. In some contexts, armed groups exercise military control over territory while State organs continue to be present and …
There are currently some 100 armed conflicts around the world, most of which are non-international in nature, involving one or more non-State armed groups (NSAG). In the course of such conflicts, armed groups frequently gain control over territory and the populations living therein. At times NSAG control is short-lived; at other times it may be …