international humanitarian law

Legislationline

Legislationline is a website provided by the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), which is part of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). It consists primarily of a database of selected legal texts from countries within the OSCE region, as well as international legal materials. The purpose of this database is to provide examples of domestic legislation and international standards for the use of lawmakers in OSCE participating states.

Geneva Conventions and Commentaries

Section of the International Committee of the Red Cross website devoted to the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their protocols. The four Conventions are: Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field; Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of Wounded, Sick and Shipwrecked Members of Armed Forces at Sea; Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War; and Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War.

ASIL Electronic Resource Guide: International Humanitarian Law

Online guide to international humanitarian law (IHL), by Joan Policastri, Foreign and International Legal Research Specialist at the University of Denver, and Sergio Stone, Foreign, Comparative and International Law Librarian at Stanford Law School. Last updated in 2013, the guide is part of ASIL's Guide to Electronic Resources for International Law. It covers basic materials and concepts of IHL and gives links to websites providing treaties, customary law, judgments of international tribunals and domestic courts, and state practice.

Crisis in Darfur: researching the legal issues

Online guide to the legal issues surrounding the Darfur crisis written by Amy Burchfield who is Access and Faculty Services Librarian at the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law Library in the United States. The guide was published in May 2009 (and updated in 2023) on the Globalex website and made freely available by the Hauser Global Law School Program at the New York University School of Law. The guide provides background information to the civil conflict in the Darfur region of Sudan and highlights "key online and print resources discussing the legal aspects of the Darfur crisis".

International Humanitarian Law Databases

This part of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) website provides free access to the ICRC's International Humanitarian Law (IHL) databases. There is a treaty database which includes IHL treaties and related documents and lists the states that have signed and/or ratified or acceded to the treaties. It also contains the ICRC commentaries to the four 1949 Geneva Conventions and their additional protocols.

International Institute of Humanitarian Law

The International Institute of Humanitarian Law is an independent not-for-profit organisation based in Italy. It conducts research, holds conferences and meetings, and trains civil and military personnel on international humanitarian law (IHL), human rights, refugee law and migration law. The site has background information on the history and principles of international humanitarian law and the right to humanitarian assistance, along with materials from events hosted by the Institute. It also provides an online library of publications on general and specific aspects of IHL.

Rule of Law in Armed Conflicts Project

The Rule of Law in Armed Conflicts (RULAC) Project is an initiative of the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights. The aim of the project is to "report on every State and disputed territory in the world, addressing both the legal norms that apply as well as the extent to which they are respected by the relevant actors." The website provides background information to international humanitarian law, international human rights law, international criminal law and international refugee law.

The Geneva Academy

The Geneva Academy, at Geneva University, carries out research and training on international law relating to armed conflict. Its website includes information about courses and specialised training at the Academy, outlines of current and completed research projects and details of publications. It also provides a series of research papers. There are links to the Rule of Law in Armed Conflicts Project website and to the Journal of International Criminal Justice, which is hosted at the Academy.

War Crimes Research Office

The War Crimes Research Office (WCRO) at the American University Washington College of Law specialises in international criminal and humanitarian law. It provides expert assistance and conducts research for international courts and tribunals, runs education programmes and publishes reports. The site has information about WCRO projects and events.

Exploring Humanitarian Law

Exploring Humanitarian Law (EHL) is an online education programme designed by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Education Development Center Inc. (EDC). EHL is a free resource providing learning and teaching materials aimed at the 13 to 18 age group. The materials are organised into modules covering topics such as the humanitarian perspective, limits in armed conflict, the law in action, dealing with violations and responding to the consequences of armed conflict.

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