International Humanitarian Law

International Humanitarian Law (IHL), also known as the law of war, the laws and customs of war or the law of armed conflict, is the legal corpus "comprised of the Geneva Conventions and the Hague Regulations, as well as subsequent treaties, case law, and customary international law." http://www.ihlresearch.org/ihl/ihl_info.php It defines the conduct and responsibilities of belligerent nations, neutral nations and individuals engaged in warfare, in relation to each other and to protected persons, usually meaning civilians.

Related Topics:
Geneva Conventions - Hague Regulations - Belligerent - Neutral nations - Warfare - Civilian

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The law is mandatory for nations bound by the appropriate treaties. There are also other customary unwritten rules of war, many of which were explored at the Nuremberg War Trials. By extension, they also define both the permissive rights of these powers as well as prohibitions on their conduct when dealing with irregular forces and non-signatories.

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