https://www.takeintoaccount.org/home daily 1.0 2021-09-28 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60da17637191ea69f2ad3db1/1625574235575/Res.+2462+%E2%80%94+The+basics Home https://www.takeintoaccount.org/respecting-humanitarian-services daily 0.75 2021-09-28 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60c372472c5a0d3105519621/1623421523201/unsplash-image-20VfF_v0GZY.jpg Respecting Humanitarian Services https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60c3709fbaf4825d34c79b7a/1623421114689/unsplash-image-OXGhu60NwxU.jpg Respecting Humanitarian Services - Individual criminal responsibility Individual criminal responsibility may arise when an individual engages in conduct related to humanitarian or medical activities proscribed as an international crime. For example, the Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) prohibits as war crimes acts related to depriving civilians of objects indispensable to their survival, including by willfully impeding relief supplies as provided for under the Geneva Conventions, and intentionally directing attacks against certain people and objects involved in humanitarian and medical activities. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60c3710b55c0e507bec7d1d2/1623421227410/unsplash-image-MPWbGMrZ6eo.jpg Respecting Humanitarian Services - State responsibility Regarding State responsibility, in general, as explained by the International Law Commission (ILC), acts or omissions of a State that constitute a breach of an obligation of the State — including IHL obligations related to humanitarian and medical activities — entail the international legal responsibility of the State (provided that the wrongfulness of that breach is not precluded) and give rise to legal consequences. Those consequences may include obligations on the State to cease the act, offer appropriate assurances and guarantees of non-repetition, and make full reparation for the injury caused. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60c371c8006abc6b93d1de11/1623421395829/back.png Respecting Humanitarian Services https://www.takeintoaccount.org/countering-terrorism daily 0.75 2021-09-28 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60e452310d88724a92d2f9fb/1625575999242/unsplash-image-ywqa9IZB-dU.jpg Countering Terrorism - Definitional dimensions For at least several decades, States have sought to prevent acts of terrorism and punish those who commit, attempt to commit, or otherwise support acts of terrorism. In doing so, States have adopted a variety of conceptual notions concerning what qualifies as an act of terrorism and other proscribed terrorism-related conduct, including “supporting” acts of terrorism. In the absence of a general international legal definition, in several treaties States have enshrined a range of notions of prohibited terrorism-related conduct, from bombing a government facility to providing financial support to a designated terrorist group. In practice, some conduct that is proscribed under definitions of terrorism or support-to-terrorism activities in international legal instruments or national legal systems is undertaken in connection with an armed conflict. Yet many — indeed, perhaps most — manifestations of prohibited terrorism-related conduct are not connected with an armed conflict. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60e452e16db50b6845990a48/1625576181137/unsplash-image-Oaqk7qqNh_c.jpg Countering Terrorism - Preconditions Several preconditions arguably must exist to counter terrorism comprehensively. For example, as a starting point, what kinds and forms of conduct are of a terrorist nature or character arguably must be sufficiently well specified. Counterterrorism actors need to possess the knowledge, training, means, and facilities necessary to prevent, suppress, and punish terrorism-related conduct. Further, counterterrorism measures must pass legal muster, including by being grounded in a legal basis and being taken in a manner consistent with applicable international and national laws. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60e455f7df051a4991383121/1625576967491/back.png Countering Terrorism https://www.takeintoaccount.org/the-basics daily 0.75 2021-09-28 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60c222a32645f426c6449fa4/1623335634646/ The Basics States have developed international humanitarian law (IHL) in part to safeguard humanitarian and medical activities in armed conflicts. Humanitarian activities are undertaken to relieve and protect people not, or no longer, actively participating in hostilities whose needs are unmet. For their part, extensive protections for impartial medical care for all wounded and sick, including the enemy, are at the foundation of the legal regime. Yet a growing body of qualitative and quantitative evidence documents how certain measures designed and applied to counter terrorism are capable of impeding or preventing humanitarian and medical activities in armed conflicts. In 2019, the Security Council urged States to take into account the potential effects of certain counterterrorism measures on exclusively humanitarian activities, including medical activities, that are carried out by impartial humanitarian actors in a manner consistent with IHL. The Council also demanded that States comply with IHL while countering terrorism. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60c2345887e2d4534aecd383/1623340175101/back.png The Basics https://www.takeintoaccount.org/adverse-impacts daily 0.75 2021-09-28 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60c23a0a95bf097a1938da7e/1623342338267/unsplash-image-QOpX1O-Mcew.jpg Adverse Impacts - In a nutshell Counterterrorism measures may lead to diminished or complete lack of access by humanitarian and medical actors to the persons affected by an armed conflict that is also characterized as a counterterrorism context, or those measures may adversely affect the scope, amount, or quality of humanitarian and medical services provided to such persons. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60c23ae220e4cc573009d685/1623342342978/unsplash-image-bAQH53VquTc.jpg Adverse Impacts - Types of impacts The diverse array of detrimental effects of certain counterterrorism measures on humanitarian and medical activities may be grouped into several cross-cutting categories, including operational, financial, security, legal, and reputational effects. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60e4603a704c791a20f9ae35/1625579607173/How+Do+Counterterrorism+Measures+Adversely+Affect+Humanitarian+Services Adverse Impacts https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60c23d7b3aab24682759d080/1623342465832/back.png Adverse Impacts - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.takeintoaccount.org/take-into-account-systems daily 0.75 2021-09-30 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60e46101ef2905076115d9eb/1625579846918/HLS+PILAC+Infographic Take Into Account Systems https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60e461651447826c4b82381a/1625579906037/Steps Take Into Account Systems https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60c243a31bdd6b0fa84a24e4/1623344048312/back.png Take Into Account Systems https://www.takeintoaccount.org/security-council-resolutions daily 0.75 2021-09-28 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60c247e466dce66ec59c06a4/1623345160199/ Security Council Resolutions - Stakes and Fault Lines Whether the humanitarian and medical needs of fighters hors de combat (out of the fight) and civilians in an armed conflict also characterized as a counterterrorism context are ultimately met depends partly on complex legal argumentation. In particular, Security Council resolutions implicate at least two sets of linked potential legal fault lines, each with significant stakes. A first possible fault line concerns whether the characterization of an adversary as a terrorist may justify limiting the applicability, scope, or content of international legal rules meant to safeguard humanitarian and medical activities in relation to that adversary, including provisions aimed at meeting the needs of fighters hors de combat. A second concerns whether humanitarian and medical activities themselves — including services aimed at addressing the unmet needs of civilians in territories under the control of a party characterized as a terrorist entity — may be legitimately considered to constitute prohibited “support” to terrorists. At a practical level, these stakes implicate urgent matters of life and death in numerous contemporary wars that double as counterterrorism contexts. At a legal-institutional level, the issues concern the relative authority of the Security Council not only to “(quasi-)legislate” counterterrorism matters but also to shape Member States’ disposition towards IHL and other bodies of law. And at a normative level, the interpretation and application of these resolutions may affect whether some of the foundational ethical commitments and value judgments reflected in existing IHL rules meant to provide protection, relief, and medical care in all armed conflicts will endure. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60e44f39dc916c060ead962b/1625575249256/Res.+2462+%E2%80%94+The+basics.png Security Council Resolutions https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60e4416d35d4721518d9732e/1625571711693/HLS Security Council Resolutions - IHL continues to apply Irrespective of whether or not the “take into account” provisions in Resolutions 2462 (2019) and Resolution 2482 (2019) are interpreted to constitute a binding decision under Article 25 of the U.N. Charter, IHL rights and obligations related to humanitarian and medical activities continue to be applicable. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60e440aef5f9156374e34215/1625571529135/unsplash-image-K6fYXynxZYY.jpg Security Council Resolutions - What’s next? Member States are obliged to accept and carry out the Council’s decisions; to exercise discretion and consider the Council’s exhortations in good faith; and to respect and ensure respect for their IHL obligations. Meanwhile, the Security Council remains seized of these matters. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60c3aaf4d2705c0080cb66f2/1623436038062/back.png Security Council Resolutions https://www.takeintoaccount.org/about daily 0.75 2021-09-28 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60c357738f342c1eed31c118/1623414661520/ About - Go deeper into the issues Read the full briefing, with citations, on which this website is based over at the HLS PILAC website. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60c3580e6fd29575fedff332/1623414826208/09_20_13_Campus_Shots_BKraft028.JPG About - Explore other dimensions For over a decade, HLS PILAC analysts have examined a variety of issues concerning intersections between humanitarian action and counterterrorism measures, from medical ethics to empirical studies to security bodies evaluating IHL compliance. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/60c10cd9ed8e1e716fad731c/t/60c359b0c1b00903ad0b2472/1623415243268/back.png About