The importance of international humanitarian law in countering insurgency in the light of selected population-centric counterinsurgency doctrines
Abstract
The accomplishment of so-called population-centric counterinsurgency (COIN) strategy, accepted by Western States, is significantly aided by International Humanitarian Law (IHL); one of the guarantees of successful populationcentric COIN operations is respecting and applying IHL, in order to win the trust and support of the civilian population, which allows to alienate insurgents and deny them shelter and other forms of support offered by the local population and eventually to subdue and defeat the insurgency. Therefore, in counterinsurgency doctrines adopted by such countries as Great Britain and the United States, also in COIN doctrine adopted by NATO, the obligation to respect and obey the humanitarian law is perceived as a factor necessary in every action in which this law is to be applied (e.g. during combat missions against insurgents or in case of their capture). Each such doctrine contains provisions relating to IHL principles and norms although doctrines tend to differ when compared with one another in terms of the degree of detail in IHL references; furthermore, not all issues covered and regulated by the said law have been adequately addressed in their content.
Keywords:
international humanitarian law, law of armed conflict, counterinsurgency, counterinsurgency doctrinesReferences
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