Syria the Battle for Aleppo Case Study
Order ID: 89JHGSJE83839 Style: APA/MLA/Harvard/Chicago Pages: 5-10 Instructions:
I. Classification of the Conflict and Applicable Law:
1. (Paras 8 – 11; 21 24; Annex I, paras 1-7)
a. How would you classify the situation in Syria at the time of the incidents at issue in the case? From the information provided in this report, who are the parties to the conflict? What is the applicable law? Does IHL bind all the parties to the conflict? Does international human rights law bind all the parties to the conflict? (GC I-IV, Art. 3; P II, Art. 1)
b.(Para. 23) Would the Syrian armys use of national militias for ground operations have affected the nature of the conflict? How would you classify such militia groups? Do they remain independent armed groups, or would you consider them de-facto organs/agents of the Syrian Government?
c. If anti-government non-state armed groups are provided with material and financial support from external actors, how does this affect the nature of the conflict? Does the degree of support provided matter? If the provision of support went beyond the provision of financial and logistical support, to training, planning and conduct of operations, would your response remain the same? [See: ICJ, Nicaragua v. United States, paras 80 122; ICTY, The Prosecutor v. Tadi?, Appeals Chamber, Merits (Document C) paras 87 145 and ICJ, Bosnia and Herzegovina v. Serbia and Montenegro (Document D in Tadic Case), paras 396 – 407]
d. (Para. 11)Did the conflict in Aleppo end with its recapture by Government forces? With the declaration of a ceasefire? When does IHL of non-international armed conflicts cease to apply to a given situation?II. Conduct of Hostilities Weapons
2. (Paras 14 -15) Syria is not a party to the 2008 Convention on Cluster Munitions. Do you think its use of cluster munitions is compatible with its international obligations? (CIHL Rule 11; CIHL Rule 12; CIHL Rule 71; P I, Art. 51 (4))
3. (Para. 86) Is the use of flechettes compatible with international humanitarian law? What principle of the conduct of hostilities is at stake?
4. (Paras 19 20) As the conflict is asymmetrical, the capabilities of armed groups as regards means of warfare cannot compare with those of States involved in the conflict. Does this exonerate armed groups from complying with IHL rules on conduct of hostilities. What principles of IHL do the weapons referred to in paras 19 and 20 risk violating? Would your answer be different if the conflict was not taking place in the context of a densely populated area? (CIHL Rule 2; CIHL Rules 7 15; CIHL Rule 71; P I, Arts 48, 51, 52 and 57)III. Conduct of Hostilities – Siege:
5. (Paras 22-24, 63 – 66, 68, 95 and 96; Annex I, paras 33 35)
a. Is holding a city under siege a prohibited method of warfare? If not, which limits does IHL prescribe? Is your answer the same for both IAC and NIAC? If so, do the same rules apply in both cases? (CIHL, Rule 53; GC I – IV, Art. 3; P II, Art. 14; P I, Art. 54)
b. In your opinion, does the Governments siege of Eastern Aleppo amount to the imposition of a collective punishment on the civilians there? (CIHL Rule 103; P II; Art. 4 (2) b)
c. What obligations do the besieging forces have towards the civilian population in the areas to which they have laid siege? Under IHL? Under IHRL? Do states and armed groups have different obligations under IHRL towards the civilian population in territories under their control?
d. What violations of IHL can you identify from the behaviour of the parties listed in the paragraphs cited?
e. Does the provision of humanitarian assistance require the consent of the territorial state? Even if the assistance is to be delivered to areas controlled by the enemy? (CIHL, Rule 55; GC I – IV, Art. 3; GC IV, Arts 23 and 59; P I, Arts 69 and 70; P II, Art. 18 (2))
f. Is a state confronted with a NIAC on its territory free to give or withhold its consent? When, if ever, does the withholding of consent violate IHL? (CIHL, Rule 55; GC I – IV, Art. 3; P II, Art. 18 (2))
g. Does IHL prohibit an arbitrary withholding of consent? When is withholding of consent arbitrary? (CIHL, Rule 55; GC IV, Arts 23 and 59; P I, Arts 69 and 70; P II, Art. 18 (2))
h. Under IHL, is Syria under an obligation to allow access by international aid organizations to all those in need? To allow access to the ICRC? Would Syria be under an obligation to allow access to international aid organizations in situations where the government is unable to meet the humanitarian needs of the population? (CIHL, Rule 55; GC I – IV, Art. 3; P II, Art. 18 (2))
i. Is the deliberate starving of civilians forbidden by IHL? In non-international armed conflicts? In the present case? Is it a war crime? A crime against humanity? (CIHL, Rule 53; GC I – IV, Art. 3; P II, Art. 14; P I, Art. 54)
j. Must a besieger allow supplies to be brought into a besieged area? Only for the benefit of the civilian population? May the besieger insist upon control of the distribution of relief to ensure that it only benefits to the civilian population? What if the besieged party does not agree with such control? (CIHL, Rule 55; GC IV, Art. 23; P I, Art. 70; P II, Art. 18 (2))
k. (Para. 20) May the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General call for an armed group to leave Aleppo city in order to allow humanitarian assistance to be delivered to the besieged area? May the besieger formulate such a condition?
l. May a besieged party prevent civilians from fleeing a besieged area?
m. Are the IHL rules on humanitarian assistance to besieged areas realistic? What rules would you suggest?IV. Conduct of Hostilities – Attacks on Medical Personnel and Facilities
6. (Paras 25 33, 38 40, 96; Annex I, paras 36 – 39) Does IHL of NIAC specifically protect medical personnel, facilities and transports? (CIHL, Rule 25, 26, 28 and 29; P II, Arts 9, 10 and 11)
7. (Paras 30-40, 96) May hospitals be targeted in military operations? Under what circumstances might this be allowed? Where these circumstances fulfilled in the present case? Would your answer remain the same if the hospitals were also used to treat wounded opposition combatants? (CIHL, Rule 28; P II, Art. 11(2); P I, Arts 12 and 13)
8. (Para. 32) What are the legal consequences of intentionally directing attacks against protected objects, such as medical units and transports, and protected medical personnel?
9. (Paras 31 and 38) The report describes how hospitals stopped displaying internationally recognised symbols to identify themselves as medical facilities after sustained attacks. What emblems are protected by IHL? What is the purpose of the emblem? Who or what objects can display the emblem? Could these hospitals have been marked with the emblem? Under what conditions? Do civilian hospitals have an obligation to display the emblem? By omitting to display the emblem, does a civilian hospital lose its special protection or general protection as a civilian object? Is the answer different if we are dealing with a military medical unit? Do you agree with the authors of the report when they claim that [t]he display of an emblem to signify a locations protected status is not required in conflicts where hospitals are deliberately targeted? Why/Why not? (GC I, Art. 38, 39, 40, 41, 42 and 44; GC II, Art. 41, 42 and 43; GC IV, Art. 18, 20, 21 and 22; P I, Art. 18; P II, Art. 12; CIHL, Rule 30)
10. (Para. 39) What specific rules of IHL risk being violated by so-called double tap attacks? Do you think these attacks are always necessarily unlawful? (CIHL Rules 1, 7, 10, 14 – 19, 25, 28-30, 109-111; P II, Arts 7-11 and 13).V. Conduct of Hostilities Attack on Humanitarian Convoy
11.(Para. 79) What does the term humanitarian aid include? Do the objects described in the paragraph referred to fall under the definition of the term? (CIHL Rule 32; GC IV, Arts 59-63; P II, Art. 18)
12. What characteristics must humanitarian aid fulfil? Whom may it benefit? (P II, Art. 18; GC IV, Arts 59-63; P I, Arts 70-71)
13. When may humanitarian organisations provide assistance to persons affected by armed conflicts? What kind of assistance may be provided? To what categories of beneficiaries? (CIHL, Rule 55; GC I – IV, Art. 3; GC IV, Arts 23 and 59; P I, Arts 69 and 70; P II, Art. 18 (2))
14. (Para. 80) Does the provider of humanitarian aid require permission to deliver aid? In IACs? In NIACs? In NIACs, does the entity have to ensure the consent of the territorial state or of the rebel group(s) in question? Of both? Only of the belligerent controlling the territory in question? (GC I-IV, Art 3; P II, Art. 18; CIHL, Rule 55)
15. (Para. 80) May humanitarian convoys be accompanied by military forces? Does this make them legitimate targets? Does the fact that the same road was occasionally used by armed group fighters for transportation affect your answer? (CIHL, Rule 1; P I, Art. 51)
16. (Paras 83 88) Do you agree with the conclusion of the Commission? Are there any other pieces of information that you would require in order to determine whether IHL violations have been committed?VI. The Evacuation of Eastern Aleppo
17. (Paras 26-31, 38, 50, 63-4) Are there certain circumstances in which IHL obliges parties to a conflict to evacuate the civilian population on the territory under their control? Are the rules on displacement the same for IACs and NIACs? (CIHL Rule 129; P II, Art. 17; GC IV, Art. 49; GC IV, Art. 147; P I Art. 85 (4) (a); ICC Statute, Art. 8(2)(e)(viii))
18. For how long may an evacuation of the civilian population be ordered? Once the reasons for evacuation no longer exist, do civilians have a right to return to their homes?
19. Does IHL foresee protection of the property of civilians who have been displaced as a result of the conflict?
20. (Para. 104; Annex I, paras 50 and 51) The Commission of Inquiry came to the conclusion that the evacuation of Aleppo amounted to the war crime of forced displacement.
a. With the information acquired through reading the report, would you come to the same conclusion? Give arguments for and against.
b. If this evacuation constituted a war crime, was a humanitarian organization facilitating the negotiation of an evacuation agreement or the evacuation itself complicit in a war crime? What arguments are available to the organization through which it might justify its participation in the evacuations?
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Syria the Battle for Aleppo Case Study