Suchergebnisse

International custom remains one of the most important sources of international law despite the codification of the law and the numerous international agreements concluded between the different actors of the international community. However, uncertainties still remain in relation to several of its aspects, presenting challenges to national and international judges when called upon to identify and apply the rules of customary international law. With a view to addressing these grey areas, the Council of Europe ad hoc Committee of Legal Advisers on Public International Law (CAHDI) in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of France organised a conference on "The Judge and International Custom" where important contributions were made by international and national judges clarifying some aspects of this topical issue. This volume contains these contributions, supplemented with articles commissioned by the CAHDI from some of the highest judges at international and national level. The collection highlights the valuable contribution made by the CAHDI to the development of public international law and in particular to the work of the International Law Commission and the Sixth Committee of the United Nations General Assembly by participating proactively in the legal debate to establish a well-defined international legal framework for this topical issue. --

AbstractThis contribution reflects on the development of informal expert manuals in the field of the laws of armed conflict. These manuals are presented as restating existing customary law, perhaps adding a few elements de lege ferenda but not having a straightforward normative intent. The authors of expert manuals state them to be non-binding, and their drafting takes place mostly in self-appointed groups. Although a normative intent may be absent when drafting such informal expert manuals, such rules may obtain normative effect nevertheless. While States are mostly absent in these processes, they seem to have a specific interest in the development of these manuals.

The application and interpretation of the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their two Additional Protocols of 1977 have developed significantly in the seventy years since the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) first published its Commentaries on these important humanitarian treaties. To promote a better understanding of, and respect for, this body of law, the ICRC commissioned a comprehensive update of its original Commentaries, of which this is the third volume. The Third Convention, relative to the treatment of prisoners of war and their protections, takes into account developments in the law and practice in the past seven decades to provide up-to-date interpretations of the Convention. The new Commentary has been reviewed by humanitarian law practitioners and academics from around the world. This new Commentary will be an essential tool for anyone involved with international humanitarian law.