ABSTRACT

In the last decade, there has been a turn to history in international humanitarian law and its accompanying fields. To examine this historization and to expand the current scope of scholarship, this book brings together scholars from various fields, including law, history, sociology, and international relations. Human rights law, international criminal law, and the law on the use of force are all explored across the text’s four main themes: historiographies of selected fields of international law; evolution of specific international humanitarian law rules in the context of legal gaps and fault lines; emotions as a factor in international law; and how actors can influence history. This work will enhance and broaden readers’ knowledge of the field and serve as an excellent starting point for further research.

chapter |6 pages

Introduction

part |2 pages

Part I

chapter 1|8 pages

Introduction

Historicizing international humanitarian law 1

chapter 4|17 pages

From spies to international criminals

The influence of the Austro-Hungarian counter-espionage service on the International Criminal Police Commission

chapter 5|17 pages

Authority, legitimacy and military violence

De facto combatant privilege of non-state armed groups through amnesty 1

part |9 pages

Part II

chapter 6|6 pages

Evolution of rules and concepts in international humanitarian law

Navigating through legal gaps and fault lines

chapter 7|15 pages

A hidden fault line

How international actors engage with IHL’s principle of distinction

chapter 8|14 pages

Restraint in bello

Some thoughts on reciprocity and humanity