Explainer
Can Hospitals Be Attacked in War? What the Law Says
Hospitals and medical units receive specific protection under international humanitarian law. That protection is strong, but the legal rules include narrow exceptions.
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Explainers
Plain-language background to help readers understand concepts, institutions, terms and methods used in conflict reporting.
Explainer
Prisoners of War: Who Qualifies and What Protections Apply?
POW status carries a detailed protection regime under the Third Geneva Convention. Here is who may qualify and what detention rules apply.
Explainer
Human Shields and the Laws of War
What “human shields” means in international humanitarian law—and why the unlawful use of shields does not remove an attacker’s obligations toward civilians.
Explainer
What Is Collective Punishment in War?
Collective penalties punish people for acts they did not personally commit. International humanitarian law prohibits collective punishment of protected persons.
Explainer
Occupation vs Annexation: What Is the Difference?
Occupation concerns effective control of territory during conflict; annexation is a claim to incorporate territory into a State. The concepts are related but not…
Explainer
What Is Military Occupation Under International Law?
Occupation is a factual legal category based on unconsented effective control by hostile foreign forces—not a synonym for invasion, annexation or sovereignty.
Explainer
How the International Criminal Court Works
Jurisdiction, complementarity, investigations, arrest warrants and trials at the ICC—explained without treating an accusation as a conviction.
Explainer
ICC vs ICJ: What Is the Difference?
The ICC prosecutes individuals for international crimes; the ICJ decides legal disputes between States. The two Hague courts are often confused.
Explainer
What Is Genocide Under International Law?
Genocide has a specific legal definition centred on intent to destroy a protected group. This explainer separates that test from the wider political use…
Explainer
What Are Crimes Against Humanity?
How crimes against humanity differ from war crimes and genocide, and what “widespread or systematic attack against a civilian population” means.