Display monitors show the result of voting at the United Nations General Assembly on Dec. 12, 2023, in favour of a resolution calling on Israel to uphold legal and humanitarian obligations in its war with Hamas. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews).
The Conversation: The Middle East and Ukraine: The rules of war depend on the nature of the conflict
As written by Bryan Peeler, Assistant Professor, Political Studies, University of Manitoba, for Conversation Canada:
Even in war, there are rules that are supposed to be followed by way of several multilateral legal frameworks that govern warfare and issues like the treatment of combatants and civilians.
Understanding what rules apply to what types of conflicts is important because it can lead to the greatest protections for civilians caught in the crossfire, and greater accountability to perpetrators of war crimes. At a time when two major wars are being waged — in the Middle East and in Ukraine — this understanding takes on a special urgency.
Read the full article here.