DOCSLIB.ORG

A/75/337 General Assembly

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
A/75/337 General Assembly United Nations A/75/337 General Assembly Distr.: General 3 September 2020 Original: English Seventy-fifth session Item 72 (b) of the provisional agenda* Promotion and protection of human rights: human rights questions, including alternative approaches for improving the effective enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms Promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism Note by the Secretary-General** The Secretary-General has the honour to transmit to the General Assembly the report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, Fionnuala Ní Aoláin, submitted in accordance with General Assembly resolution 72/180 and Human Rights Council resolution 40/16. __________________ * A/75/150. ** The present report was submitted after the deadline as a result of consultations with Member States and other relevant stakeholders. 20-11440 (E) 091020 *2011440* A/75/337 Report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, Fionnuala Ní Aoláin Summary In the present report, the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, Fionnuala Ní Aoláin, addresses the interface between international human rights law and international humanitarian law in counter-terrorism contexts. She affirms the interdependent and intersectional nature of the relationship between both legal regimes, which is all the more pronounced in counter-terrorism contexts. She acknowledges the persistent and unequivocal affirmation by the Security Council and other bodies that any counter-terrorism measures must always and fully comply with, inter alia, the overarching norms of international human rights law, international humanitarian law and refugee law. This is a key basis on which the Special Rapporteur makes the recommendations set out in the report. She affirms that counter-terrorism operations and measures are frequently undertaken in the context of non-international armed conflicts in which international humanitarian law applies and which involve non-State armed groups, including actors subject to terrorist designation by the United Nations and its targeted sanctions regime or those included on regional and national terrorist designation lists. The Special Rapporteur reiterates her concern about the lack of sufficient consideration regarding the interaction between international humanitarian law and the norms and standards relevant to countering terrorism, leading to a troubling conflation of the two. She is likewise deeply concerned that such conflation leads to the weakening of human rights protection in fragile, conflict and post-conflict settings. She makes recommendations to prevent such weakening, which does not serve the interests of justice or security. She underscores that failure to take due account of both international humanitarian law and international human rights law results in counter- terrorism practice that fails to protect the most vulnerable, including persons deprived of their liberty, persons with disabilities, older persons, persons in need of medical care, women and children. She sets out the costs of the failure to systematically apply humanitarian exemptions for activities that are humanitarian and impartial in nature and are absolutely essential for the protection of the most vulnerable persons in society. She makes specific recommendations to augment the due process protections applied in sanctions regimes, thereby ensuring the optimal application of convergent judicial guarantees under both legal regimes. She addresses the application of the principle of equality across both legal regimes and with regard to foreign terrorist fighters and other regulatory arenas, providing clear guidance to States on what the import of that principle requires in practice. She applauds the work of humanitarian organizations, including the contributions that many make as guarantors and enablers of civic space in many of the most fragile and contested areas in the world. She denounces attacks on the integrity, independence and operational capacity of such organizations, whether directly or indirectly, by States through the prism of counter-terrorism rhetoric or regulation, and underscores that the organizations are critical to the protection of humanity and the dignity of the most vulnerable and, thus, to conflict resolution. 2/22 20-11440 A/75/337 I. Introduction 1. The present report is submitted to the General Assembly by the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, Fionnuala Ní Aoláin, pursuant to Assembly resolution 72/180 and Human Rights Council resolution 40/16. In the report, she analyses the interface between human rights and international humanitarian law in counter-terrorism contexts, with a particular focus on counter-terrorism practices that are inconsistent with or undermine the integrity of fundamental rights, duties and protections under those legal regimes. 2. A report on the work undertaken by the Special Rapporteur in fulfilment of her mandate in the period since her previous report to the General Assembly is provided below. II. Activities of the Special Rapporteur 3. The Special Rapporteur had a fruitful year, advancing sustained dialogue with States on the protection and promotion of human rights. She presented a report to the Human Rights Council in March 2020 on the productive visit that she undertook to Kazakhstan. She noted the positive leadership of Kazakhstan in ensuring the return of over 500 nationals, primarily women and children, from the north-east of the Syrian Arab Republic (see A/HRC/43/46/Add.1, paras. 60–61, for her recommendations). She accepted a country visit to Maldives, which was temporarily postponed owing to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. She conducted a working-level visit to the European Union in January, and appreciates the ongoing dialogue with its institutions. 4. In her thematic report on the human rights impact of policies and practices aimed at preventing and countering violent extremism (A/HRC/43/46), the Special Rapporteur acknowledged the social and political imperatives of addressing violent extremism, but underscored that only rights-affirming and rights-focused policies would have long-term success in preventing violence. She highlighted the lack of a robust scientific basis for the current policies and practices and the complete absence of human rights-based monitoring and evaluation, including by United Nations entities. 5. The Special Rapporteur has made it a priority to provide technical assistance and views concerning counter-terrorism legislation to States.1 In the past year, she provided reviews of legislation or legislative developments to Cambodia, China, Egypt, France, India, Kyrgyzstan, Peru, the Philippines, Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. 6. The Special Rapporteur is a signatory of the United Nations Global Counter- Terrorism Coordination Compact and an active member of its working groups. In February, she participated in the regional high-level conference on the theme “Foreign terrorist fighters: addressing current challenges”, held in Vienna. She also participated as a speaker in Counter-Terrorism Week, which was held online from 6 to 10 July. 7. In July, the Special Rapporteur published a study on the human rights implications of the use of biometric tools and data in the counter-terrorism arena,2 and a multi-stakeholder consultation is planned. She produced draft principles on __________________ 1 See www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Terrorism/Pages/LegislationPolicy.aspx. 2 Krisztina Huszti-Orbán and Fionnuala Ní Aoláin, “Use of biometric data to identify terrorists: best practice or risky business?”, 2020. 20-11440 3/22 A/75/337 human rights-compliant watch listing to inform, inter alia, the Global Counterterrorism Forum joint initiative aimed at developing a watch-listing guidance manual.3 8. The Special Rapporteur continued her engagement with non-governmental organizations (NGOs), human rights defenders and civil society. Meetings were held in Belfast (United Kingdom), Brussels, Dublin, Geneva, Minneapolis (United States of America), New York, Paris and Washington, D.C. She prioritized meeting with NGOs remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic, including those in the Philippines and Turkey. She participated in the high-level meeting on global counter-terrorism and human rights, organized online by 11 NGOs on 11 June.4 She met regularly with victims of terrorism and their representative organizations and worked closely with women’s organizations that address the negative effects of counter-terrorism practices on women and girls. She also met regularly with humanitarian organizations and remained deeply concerned about the challenges that civil society actors face in their day-to-day work owing to the adverse and nefarious use of counter-terrorism and extremism laws. 9. The Special Rapporteur issued several communications, including joint communications, on the use of legislation framed as national security and counter- terrorism against civil society actors. She submitted amicus briefs to the Court of Appeal of England and Wales (in the case relating to Shamima Begum) and the European Court of Human Rights (in the case Mohammad and Mohammad v. Romania).5 10. The Special
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Taming the Trolls: the Need for an International Legal Framework to Regulate State Use of Disinformation on Social Media
    Taming the Trolls: The Need for an International Legal Framework to Regulate State Use of Disinformation on Social Media * ASHLEY C. NICOLAS INTRODUCTION Consider a hypothetical scenario in which hundreds of agents of the Russian GRU arrive in the United States months prior to a presidential election.1 The Russian agents spend the weeks leading up to the election going door to door in vulnerable communities, spreading false stories intended to manipulate the population into electing a candidate with policies favorable to Russian positions. The agents set up television stations, use radio broadcasts, and usurp the resources of local newspapers to expand their reach and propagate falsehoods. The presence of GRU agents on U.S. soil is an incursion into territorial integrity⎯a clear invasion of sovereignty.2 At every step, Russia would be required to expend tremendous resources, overcome traditional media barriers, and risk exposure, making this hypothetical grossly unrealistic. Compare the hypothetical with the actual actions of the Russians during the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Sitting behind computers in St. Petersburg, without ever setting foot in the United States, Russian agents were able to manipulate the U.S. population in the most sacred of domestic affairs⎯an election. Russian “trolls” targeted vulnerable populations through social media, reaching millions of users at a minimal cost and without reliance on established media institutions.3 Without using * Georgetown Law, J.D. expected 2019; United States Military Academy, B.S. 2009; Loyola Marymount University M.Ed. 2016. © 2018, Ashley C. Nicolas. The author is a former U.S. Army Intelligence Officer.
    [Show full text]
  • Applying Traditional Military Principles to Cyber Warfare
    2012 4th International Conference on Cyber Confl ict Permission to make digital or hard copies of this publication for internal use within NATO and for personal or educational use when for non-profi t or non-commercial C. Czosseck, R. Ottis, K. Ziolkowski (Eds.) purposes is granted providing that copies bear this notice and a full citation on the 2012 © NATO CCD COE Publications, Tallinn first page. Any other reproduction or transmission requires prior written permission by NATO CCD COE. Applying Traditional Military Principles to Cyber Warfare Samuel Liles Marcus Rogers Cyber Integration and Information Computer and Information Operations Department Technology Department National Defense University iCollege Purdue University Washington, DC West Lafayette, IN [email protected] [email protected] J. Eric Dietz Dean Larson Purdue Homeland Security Institute Larson Performance Engineering Purdue University Munster, IN West Lafayette, IN [email protected] [email protected] Abstract: Utilizing a variety of resources, the conventions of land warfare will be analyzed for their cyber impact by using the principles designated by the United States Army. The analysis will discuss in detail the factors impacting security of the network enterprise for command and control, the information conduits found in the technological enterprise, and the effects upon the adversary and combatant commander. Keywords: cyber warfare, military principles, combatant controls, mechanisms, strategy 1. INTRODUCTION Adams informs us that rapid changes due to technology have increasingly effected the affairs of the military. This effect whether economic, political, or otherwise has sometimes been extreme. Technology has also made substantial impacts on the prosecution of war. Adams also informs us that information technology is one of the primary change agents in the military of today and likely of the future [1].
    [Show full text]
  • JP 3-13.4, Military Deception
    Joint Publication 3-13.4 Military Deception 26 January 2012 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY COMMANDER’S OVERVIEW • Provides an Overview of Military Deception (MILDEC) and the Goals, Objectives, Functions, and Principles • Describes the Relationship between MILDEC and Information Operations • Explains MILDEC Planning Methodology and Planning Steps • Discusses Execution of MILDEC Operations Military Deception and Its Goals, Objectives, Functions, and Principles Military deception Specific guidance from the joint force commander (JFC) or (MILDEC) is actions higher authority during planning will determine the military executed to deliberately deception (MILDEC) role in a joint operation. MILDEC mislead adversary is intended to deter hostile actions, increase the success military, paramilitary, or of friendly defensive actions, or to improve the success violent extremist of any potential friendly offensive action. Use of organization decision MILDEC during any phase of an operation should help to makers, thereby causing mislead adversaries as to the strength, readiness, locations, the adversary to take and intended missions of friendly forces. In combat specific actions (or situations, the focus is on driving the adversary to inactions) that will culmination and achieving the objectives defined by the contribute to the JFC. In noncombat situations, the JFC seeks to dominate accomplishment of the the situation with decisive operations designed to establish friendly mission. conditions for an early, favorable conclusion. MILDEC and Information Care should be taken to protect the quality of information Quality available for friendly decisions and public dissemination. This will help ensure the JFC has accurate information by not allowing staffs to unknowingly perceive the joint task force’s MILDEC efforts as accurate information.
    [Show full text]
  • Fm 6-27 Mctp 11-10C the Commander's Handbook on the Law of Land Warfare
    FM 6-27 MCTP 11-10C THE COMMANDER'S HANDBOOK ON THE LAW OF LAND WARFARE AUGUST 2019 DISTRIBUTION RESTRICTION: Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited. This publication supersedes FM 27-10/MCTP 11-10C, dated 18 July 1956. HEADQUARTERS, DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY HEADQUARTERS, UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS Foreword The lessons of protracted conflict confirm that adherence to the law of armed conflict (LOAC) by the land forces, both in intern ational and non-international armed conflict, must serve as the standard that we train to and apply across the entire range of military operations. Adhering to LOAC enhances the legitimacy of our operations and supports the moral framework of our armed forces. We have learned th at we deviate from these norms to our detriment and risk undercutting both domesti c and international support for our operations. LOAC has been and remains a vital guide for all military operations conducted by the U.S. Governm ent. This fi eld manual provides a general description of the law of land warfare for Soldiers and Marines, delineated as statements of doctrine and practice, to gui de the land forces in conducting di sci plined military operations in accordance with the rule of law. The Department of Defense Law of War Manual (June 20 15, updated December 2016) is the authoritative statement on the law of war for the Department of Defense. In the event of a conflict or discrepancy regarding the legal standards addressed in this publication and th e DOD Law of War Manual, the latter takes precedence.
    [Show full text]
  • Constraints on the Waging of War, an Introduction to International
    ISBN 2-88145-115-2 © International Committee of the Red Cross, Frits Kalshoven and Liesbeth Zegveld, Geneva, March 2001 3rd edition Frits Kalshoven and Liesbeth Zegveld CONSTRAINTS ON THE WAGING OF WAR An Introduction to International Humanitarian Law 19, Avenue de la Paix, CH-1202 Geneva T +41 22 734 60 01 F +41 22 733 20 57 E-mail: [email protected] Web: www.icrc.org Design: Strategic Communications SA Original: English March 2001 Produced with environment-friendly materials I must retrace my steps, and must deprive those who wage war of nearly all the privileges which I seemed to grant, yet did not grant to them. For when I first set out to explain this part of the law of nations I bore witness that many things are said to be ‘lawful’ or ‘permissible’ for the reason that they are done with impunity, in part also because coactive tribunals lend to them their authority; things which nevertheless, either deviate from the rule of right (whether this has any basis in law strictly so called, or in the admonitions of other virtues), or at any rate may be omitted on higher grounds and with greater praise among good men. Grotius: De jure belli ac pacis Book III, Chapter X, Section I.1. (English translation: Francis G. Kelsey, Oxford, 1925). TABLE OF CONTENTS PREFACE ........................................................... 7 FOREWORD ........................................................... 9 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION ........................................................ 11 I 1 Object and purpose ............................................... 12 I 2 Custom and treaty ................................................. 15 I 3 Implementation and enforcement ................................. 16 I 4 Structure .......................................................... 17 CHAPTER II THE MAIN CURRENTS: THE HAGUE, GENEVA, NEW YORK .....
    [Show full text]
  • Protecting the Global Information Space in Times of Armed Conflict
    WORKING PAPERS Protecting the global information space in times of armed conflict ROBIN GEISS AND HENNING LAHMANN* FEBRUARY 2021 *The authors wish to thank Dr Kubo Mačák for his helpful comments on an earlier draft of the paper. TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction ................................................................................................................................................ 1 Mapping the Threat Landscape: Risks to the Information Space in Contemporary Armed Conflict ......................................................................................................................................................... 3 Scenario A – Social Media-Enabled Foreign Electoral Interference ....................................................... 3 Scenario B – Large-scale Distortion of the Media Ecosystem ................................................................... 4 Scenario C – Manipulation of Civilian Behaviour to Gain Military Advantage ................................ 4 Scenario D – Compromising and Extorting of Civilian Individuals Through Information Warfare .....................................................................................................................................................................5 Scenario E – Disinformation as Incitement to Violence ........................................................................... 5 Variants of Distorting the Information Ecosystem in War and Peace............................................ 5 Protecting Information Spaces under Existing
    [Show full text]
  • International Law on Use of Enemy Uniforms As a Stratagem and the Acquittal in the Skorzeny Case
    Missouri Law Review Volume 24 Issue 1 January 1959 Article 7 1959 International Law on Use of Enemy Uniforms As a Stratagem and the Acquittal in the Skorzeny Case Maximilian Koessler Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.missouri.edu/mlr Part of the Law Commons Recommended Citation Maximilian Koessler, International Law on Use of Enemy Uniforms As a Stratagem and the Acquittal in the Skorzeny Case, 24 MO. L. REV. (1959) Available at: https://scholarship.law.missouri.edu/mlr/vol24/iss1/7 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Law Journals at University of Missouri School of Law Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Missouri Law Review by an authorized editor of University of Missouri School of Law Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Koessler: Koessler: International Law on Use of Enemy Uniforms As a Stratagem INTERNATIONAL LAW ON USE OF ENEMY UNIFORMS AS A STRATAGEM AND THE ACQUITTAL IN THE SKORZENY CASE MlAxnaLmiA KoEssLER* I. INTRODUCTION Prior to the trial, by an American military commission entitled "Military Government Court,"' of Otto Skorzeny and his codefendants,2 which trial took place in Dachau between August 18 and September 8, 1947, and ended with an acquittal of all the defendants, the international law on legitimacy or illegitimacy of the use of enemy uniforms as a stratagem was not settled in so far as use outside open combat was con- cerned, as will be later on discussed at some length. One writer has expressed the view that the outcome of that trial supports the view "that such deception is permissible if not done in battle."8 However, this is not necessarily so.
    [Show full text]
  • Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions
    0031-0330 irl.qxd 2.3.2009 14:21 Page 233 V PROTOCOL ADDITIONAL TO THE GENEVA CONVENTIONS OF 12 AUGUST 1949, AND RELATING TO THE PROTECTION OF VICTIMS OF INTERNATIONAL ARMED CONFLICTS (PROTOCOL I), OF 8 JUNE 1977 Preamble .................................................................................................... 239 PART I General provisions Article 1 General principles and scope of application............................. 240 Article 2 Definitions ................................................................................. 240 Article 3 Beginning and end of application ............................................. 241 Article 4 Legal status of the Parties to the conflict................................... 241 Article 5 Appointment of Protecting Powers and of their substitute ...... 241 Article 6 Qualified persons....................................................................... 242 Article 7 Meetings..................................................................................... 243 PART II Wounded, sick and shipwrecked SECTION I – General protection Article 8 Terminology............................................................................... 243 Article 9 Field of application .................................................................... 245 Article 10 Protection and care.................................................................... 245 Article 11 Protection of persons................................................................. 245 Article 12 Protection of medical units ......................................................
    [Show full text]
  • The American Bombardment of Kampuchea, 1969-1973 Ben Kiernan
    Vietnam Generation Volume 1 Number 1 The Future of the Past: Revisionism and Article 3 Vietnam 1-1989 The American Bombardment of Kampuchea, 1969-1973 Ben Kiernan Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.lasalle.edu/vietnamgeneration Part of the American Studies Commons Recommended Citation Kiernan, Ben (1989) "The American Bombardment of Kampuchea, 1969-1973," Vietnam Generation: Vol. 1 : No. 1 , Article 3. Available at: http://digitalcommons.lasalle.edu/vietnamgeneration/vol1/iss1/3 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by La Salle University Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Vietnam Generation by an authorized editor of La Salle University Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The A m erican BoMbARdMENT of K a m puc Nea, 1969-197? B e n K iE R N A N On March 18,1969, the United States Air Force began its secret B-52 bombardment of rural Cambodia'. Exactly one year later, that country's ruler. Prince Norodom Sihanouk, was overthrown and the Vietnam War, com bined with a new civil war, to tear the nation apart for the next five years. The United States bombing of the countryside continued (now publicly) and increased from 1970 to August 1973. when Congress imposed a halt. Nearly half of the US bom bing tonnage was dropped in the last six months. The total was 540,000 tons. Rural Cambodia was destroyed, and 'Democratic Kampuchea' rose in its ashes. The emergent Communist Party of Kampuchea (CPK) regime, led by Pol Pot, had profited greatly from the U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • The War in Iraq and International Humanitarian Law Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Last Updated April 7, 2003
    The War in Iraq and International Humanitarian Law Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Last Updated April 7, 2003 The war in Iraq has raised a number of important issues of international humanitarian law (IHL), also known as the laws of war. IHL consists of the rules during armed conflict that seek to protect civilians and captured or incapacitated combatants, and restrict the methods and means of warfare. The following Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) address some of the legal issues brought to public attention by official government statements and media reports. The FAQ do not attempt to assess the validity of any factual assertions made; instead they provide a legal analysis on the basis of assumed facts. This set of FAQ is not exhaustive and will be added to as necessary. The responses below are based on IHL as derived from international treaties and customary international law (practices broadly accepted as legally binding). The main sources of treaty law are the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 (to which all warring states are party) and the Hague Convention of 1907 respecting the Laws and Customs of War on Land. Customary IHL is drawn from state practice, decisions of international tribunals, scholarly works, and international treaties to which the United States and Iraq are not party (particularly Protocols I and II of 1977 to the Geneva Conventions), many provisions of which are accepted as reflecting customary international law. At its core, international humanitarian law seeks to limit the harm to people and property during wartime. Human Rights Watch urges all parties to the conflict in Iraq to abide scrupulously by its obligations under IHL.
    [Show full text]
  • The Club-K Anti-Ship Missile System: a Case Study in Perfidy and Its Repression by Robert Clarke*
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Digital Commons @ American University Washington College of Law Human Rights Brief Volume 20 | Issue 1 Article 4 2012 The lubC -K Anti-Ship Missile System: A Case Study in Perfidy and its Repression Robert Clarke Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.wcl.american.edu/hrbrief Part of the Human Rights Law Commons Recommended Citation Clarke, Robert. "The lubC -K Anti-Ship Missile System: A Case Study in Perfidy nda its Repression." Human Rights Brief 20, no. 1 (2012): 22-28. This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Washington College of Law Journals & Law Reviews at Digital Commons @ American University Washington College of Law. It has been accepted for inclusion in Human Rights Brief by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ American University Washington College of Law. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Clarke: The Club-K Anti-Ship Missile System: A Case Study in Perfidy and The Club-K Anti-Ship Missile System: A Case Study in Perfidy and its Repression by Robert Clarke* INTRODUCTION the protection of civilians requires an institutional separation he Club-K anti-ship missile system represents a new and between them and combatants, such a divide may prevent the dangerous means of naval warfare, and one which exist- repression of civilian activity which imperils that same protection. Ting international humanitarian law (IHL) is ill-equipped to confront. Secreted inside the ubiquitous intermodal shipping PERFIDY OR RUSE container and placed on the deck of a cargo carrier, the missile system reveals itself only when the container roof opens, and the QUESTION OF CONFIDENCE missile rises from concealment and launches.1 As footage of test launches and displays at defense exhibitions illustrate, the Club- Although armies have employed deception since time imme- 4 K’s ease of transport and concealment offers obvious advantages morial, long-standing custom prohibits acts of treachery.
    [Show full text]
  • IRRC September 2002 Vol. 84 No 847 547
    mise 84 11.10.2002 12:26 Page 547 RICR Septembre IRRC September 2002 Vol. 84 No 847 547 Acts of terror, “terrorism” and international humanitarian law HANS-PETER GASSER* Since time immemorial civilians have been victims of terrorist acts. Ordinary people going to work by bus or having coffee on the sidewalks are the usual target of indiscriminate violence, not well-known players on the domestic or international scene but bystanders. It may, however, also happen that an act of terrorism strikes persons in the limelight: government officials, opposition leaders, military or police personnel. Such recourse to unchecked and indiscriminate violence has always been deemed contrary to fundamen- tal rules of law, whether enshrined in international treaties protecting the human being or codified by domestic law, in particular criminal law. No civ- ilization, no creed — and no decent human being —condones acts of terror- ism. Moreover, terrorists have always been prosecuted for their crimes. Terrorist attacks on human lives and property have not only brought suffering and distress to the individual victims, but have often had far-reach- ing consequences for the life of a nation or even the course of history. In 1914, for example, the killing in Sarajevo of the Austrian Crown Prince trig- gered the outbreak of the First World War. That event and the revolution which in 1917 disrupted the Russian Empire signalled the end of a long period of stability in nineteenth-century Europe. The twentieth century has seen a spate of terrorist acts all over the world. Few recent conflicts have not been characterized by appalling acts of cruelty against civilians, perpetrated with the sole aim of terrorizing the civilian population of a country at war.
    [Show full text]