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2 - Protection of Civilians under International Humanitarian Law

from Part I - The International Legal Framework

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 August 2022

Stuart Casey-Maslen  and
Tobias Vestner
Stuart Casey-Maslen
Affiliation:
University of Pretoria
Tobias Vestner
Affiliation:
Geneva Centre for Security Policy
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Summary

IHL offers a broad platform for the protection of civilians in all armed conflicts. This chapter describes the extent of civilian immunity from attack and how that immunity can be lost. IHL does not proscribe all civilian deaths and injuries, but seeks rather to minimise civilian harm. Controversies concern who is a civilian in non-international armed conflict and the problems of interpretation and application of the fundamental principles of distinction and proportionality in attack.

Keywords

Humanitarian lawdefinition of civilianarmed conflictcombatantimmunity from attacknon-international armed conflict
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Chapter
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International Law and Policy on the Protection of Civilians , pp. 30 - 49
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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