ABSTRACT
In the international system, the role of nonstate actors (NSAs) has gained prominence in recent decades, not only in influencing decision making in multilateral institutions on global issues, but also in shaping regional politics, the foreign policies of states, and international relations, in general. While many NSAs, especially in the fields of environment, international trade, and human rights, have largely operated within the boundaries of civil liberties and freedom accorded under international law, a large number of nonstate armed groups (NSAGs) or terrorist groups have used violence to achieve their ideological and political objectives, sometimes with alleged state support, leading to military conflicts between states. As a result, the activities of NSAGs have caused serious controversies and confrontations between states, confrontations that on many occasions have been referred to international organizations such as the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for dispute settlement. As more and more states (host) employ NSAGs to achieve their foreign policy objectives with little accountability for the NSAGs acts, there has been an increase in preemptive military responses by states (victim/injured) on the grounds of self-defense against the host state. This has necessitated the ICJ looking into several cases of this nature to determine state (host) responsibility and accountability and the rights of the injured states under international law.
