Enhancing civilian protection from use of explosive weapons in populated areas: building a policy and research agenda

Borrie, John; Brehm, Maya

doi:10.1017/s1816383112000124

Cited by 10 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…In recent years, several organizations have started to assess the scale of this problem, and the Review has reflected this increasing awareness. 26 The UN secretary-general has expressed his concern about the matter several times in the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict annual report. 27 Working on the ground, the ICRC has witnessed first-hand the consequences of using explosive weapons in urban areas.…”

Section: Sparing the Civilian Populationmentioning

confidence: 99%

War in cities: The spectre of total war

Vincent¹

2016

Int. rev. Red Cross

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A scene of devastation, blanketed with grey dust, stretches into the distance in eerie silence. Walls riddled with bullets, buildings collapsing in on themselves, external walls blown away to reveal an intimate view of a bedroom or living room, streets blocked by piles of rubble.These sickening images of destruction -filmed from above by drones and shared on social media -probably best symbolize the current resurgence in urban warfare. Other images come to mind: bombed-out hospitals, children being pulled from wreckage, snipers roaming the maze of tunnels and walkways that have been blasted through the walls of now-uninhabited houses.Contrasting starkly with these often deserted urban scenes of destruction are the pictures of overpopulated camps and makeshift boats brimming over with men, women and children. City-dwellers are often forcibly evacuated or driven to flee by conflict or hardship, with no choice but to leave behind their work, their relationships and the safety of their homes.But not everyone can or wants to flee. For those who remain, life often becomes extremely dangerous and precarious when the complex fabric of urban services disintegrates: power, water and food supplies are cut off, leading to isolation, cold, darkness, illness and anxiety about what tomorrow may bring. As schools, businesses and shops close, people's future prospects disappear. Bombs -through negligence, error or criminal intent -strike people and the infrastructure they need to survive.Gaza, Sana'a, Ramadi and Aleppo have recently joined the long list of cities that have been devastated by warfare throughout history, and other cities in Syria and Iraq may soon go the same way. After an issue dealing with how war has changed, and with future editions due to cover displacement, migration and the conflict in Syria, the International Review of the Red Cross felt the need to address the subject of urban warfare, not just because of the humanitarian crises that are continuing to unfold, but because urbanization is an unstoppable trend. Tomorrow's wars will inevitably take place in urban areas, where more than half of the world's population now lives. According to the United Nations (UN) World Urbanization Prospects report, urban population growth is accelerating. Only 30% of the world's population lived in cities in 1950, but the figure was 54% in 2014 and is projected to rise to 66% in 2050. 1

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Section: Sparing the Civilian Populationmentioning

confidence: 99%

War in cities: The spectre of total war

Vincent¹

2016

Int. rev. Red Cross

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“…The successes of Ottawa and Oslo have led activists and states – with varying levels of success – to try to apply these experiences to campaigns on small arms and light weapons (Bolton et al., ; Garcia, ), the arms trade (Whall and Pytlak, ), depleted uranium and other toxic weapons (Weir, ), the use of explosive weapons in populated areas (Borrie and Brehm, ) and ‘killer robots’ (Carpenter, ). It has also empowered a community of professional civil society campaigners, UN employees and diplomats who are often involved and influential in several disarmament and arms control issue areas.…”

Section: Approaches To Nuclear Disarmament Policy Makingmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Humanitarian Initiative on Nuclear Weapons: An Introduction to Global Policy's Special Section

Bolton

Minor

2016

Global Policy

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The dominant paradigm of international relations theory has long seen influence over nuclear arsenals as the preserve of presidents, premiers and generals of the world's great powers, not underfunded activists, feminist campaigners, radical nuns or even diplomats of small states. The approach of this special section could not be more different. In fact, we have intentionally curated a collection of articles that try to ‘de‐center’ the academic conversation about nuclear weapons. The inspiration for our approach comes from the Humanitarian Initiative on Nuclear Weapons, which since its emergence after the 2010 Review Conference of the Nuclear Non‐Proliferation Treaty, has dramatically reshaped the diplomatic discussions on nuclear disarmament, led by small states and middle powers. The shift in discourse has been accelerated by revitalized civil society action, represented by the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, a global NGO coalition, as well as renewed calls for disarmament from religious leaders – most notably Pope Francis. This special section, written from the perspective of scholars and practitioners associated with the Humanitarian Initiative, examines its dimensions and its potential impact on global policy making.

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“…50 Similarly, Oransanye and Igbafe 51 said that about a thousand persons are said to lose their lives annually in bloody encounters between militia, communities and law enforcement forces in Northern Nigeria. 52 In fact, the recent report issued by the Amnesty International has revealed that civilians in 37 Levee en Masse refers to the inhabitants of a non-occupied territory who on the approach of the enemy, spontaneously take up arms to resist the invading forces without having had time to form themselves into regular armed units, provided they carry out openly and respect the laws and customs of war. 38 These are instruments under International Humanitarian law which are applicable during Non International armed conflict 39 52 Ibid Nigeria are in lose -lose situation.…”

Section: A Cursory Insight Into the Situation In Northern Nigeriamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…120 Bruderlein 121 also lamented on the protection of civilians in internal armed conflicts, where he affirmed that prevalent threats to civilians and widespread violations of International humanitarian law and human right law by states and non state actors mostly arises in non international armed conflicts. 122 In fact, such violations according to Borrie and Brehm 123 usually occur as a result of using explosive weapons during conduct of hostilities, most especially in populated areas. Yoram 124 while discussing the effects of suicide attack, explained that, in the recent times, it is turned out to be different phenomenon unlike what was known before in the case of Japanese Kamikaze where combatants undertakes a suicidal mission against legitimate military targets.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

An Analytical Review of Islamic and International Laws on Civilian Right to Life and Human Dignity

Chiroma¹

2013

IOSR-JHSS

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Enhancing civilian protection from use of explosive weapons in populated areas: building a policy and research agenda

Cited by 10 publications

References 18 publications

War in cities: The spectre of total war

War in cities: The spectre of total war

The Humanitarian Initiative on Nuclear Weapons: An Introduction to Global Policy's Special Section

An Analytical Review of Islamic and International Laws on Civilian Right to Life and Human Dignity

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