International humanitarian law (IHL), also known as jus in bello or the laws of armed conflict, is the law that regulates the conduct of war. It is a branch of international law that seeks to limit the effects of armed conflict by protecting persons who are not participants in hostilities and by restricting and regulating the means and methods of warfare available to combatants. IHL (jus in bello) and jus ad bellum, which pertains to the justification for resorting to war, form the two strands of the law of war governing all aspects of international armed conflicts.

International humanitarian law is inspired by considerations of humanity and the mitigation of human suffering. It comprises a set of rules, which is established by treaty or custom and that seeks to protect persons and property/objects that are or may be affected by armed conflict, and it limits the rights of parties to a conflict to use methods and means of warfare of their choice. Sources of international law include international agreements (the Geneva Conventions), customary international law, general principles of nations, and case law.ICRCWhat is international humanitarian law? 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 non-combatants. It is designed to balance humanitarian concerns and military necessity, and subjects warfare to the rule of law by limiting its destructive effect and alleviating human suffering. Serious violations of international humanitarian law are called war crimes.

There is academic debate whether IHL, which is formally constructed as a system that prohibits certain acts, can also facilitate violence against civilians when belligerents argue that their attacks are compliant with IHL.

History Humanitarian norms in history Even in the midst of the carnage of history there have been frequent expressions and invocation of humanitarian norms for the protection of the victims of armed conflicts: the wounded, the sick and the shipwrecked. These date back to ancient times.

In the Old Testament, the King of Israel prevents the slaying of the captured, following the prophet Elisha's admonition to spare enemy prisoners. In answer to a question from the King, Elisha said, "You shall not slay them. Would you slay those whom you have taken captive with your sword and with your bow? Set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink and go to their master."

In ancient India there are records (the Laws of Manu, for example) describing the types of weapons that should not be used: "When he fights with his foes in battle, let him not strike with weapons concealed (in wood), nor with (such as are) barbed, poisoned, or the points of which are blazing with fire." There is also the command not to strike a eunuch nor the enemy "who folds his hands in supplication ... Nor one who sleeps, nor one who has lost his coat of mail, nor one who is naked, nor one who is disarmed, nor one who looks on without taking part in the fight."The Laws of Manu VII.91-92. See also

Islamic law states that "non-combatants who did not take part in fighting such as women, children, monks and hermits, the aged, blind, and insane" were not to be molested. The first Caliph, Abu Bakr, proclaimed, "Do not mutilate. Do not kill little children or old men or women. Do not cut off the heads of palm trees or burn them. Do not cut down fruit trees. Do not slaughter livestock except for food." Islamic jurists have held that a prisoner should not be killed, as he "cannot be held responsible for mere acts of belligerency". However, the prohibition against killing non-combatants is not necessarily absolute in Islamic Law. For example, in situations where an "enemy retreats inside fortifications and one-to-one combat is not an option", Islamic jurists have been unanimous as to the permissibility on the use of less discriminating weapons such as mangonels (a weapon for catapulting large stones) if required by military necessity but have differed with respect to the use of fire in such cases.

Modern era Fritz Munch sums up historical military practice before 1800: "The essential points seem to be these: In battle and in towns taken by force, combatants and non-combatants were killed and property was destroyed or looted."Fritz Munch, "History of the Laws of War", in: R. Bernhardt (ed.), Encyclopedia of Public International Law Volume IV (2000), pp. 1386–1388. In the 17th century, the Dutch jurist Hugo Grotius, widely regarded as the founder or father of public international law, wrote that "wars, for the attainment of their objects, it cannot be denied, must employ force and terror as their most proper agents".

The most important antecedent of IHL is the current Armistice Agreement and Regularization of War, signed and ratified in 1820 between the authorities of the then Government of Great Colombia and the Chief of the Expeditionary Forces of the Spanish Crown, in the Venezuelan city of Santa Ana de Trujillo. This treaty was signed under the conflict of Independence, being the first of its kind in the West.

It was not until the second half of the 19th century, however, that a more systematic attempts to limit the savagery of warfare was initiated. This reflected the changing view of warfare by states influenced by the Age of Enlightenment. The purpose of warfare was to overcome the enemy state, which could be done by disabling the enemy combatants. Thus, "the distinction between combatants and civilians, the requirement that wounded and captured enemy combatants must be treated humanely, and that quarter must be given, some of the pillars of modern humanitarian law, all follow from this principle".

Hague Conventions In the United States, a German immigrant, Francis Lieber, drew up a code of conduct in 1863, which came to be known as the Lieber Code, for the Union Army during the American Civil War. The Lieber Code included the humane treatment of civilian populations in areas of conflict and forbade the execution of POWs outside of specific conditions.

The Lieber Code subsequently formed the basis for the Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907, the first multilateral treaties that addressed the conduct of warfare. The conventions defined "the rights and duties of belligerents in the conduct of operations and limits the choice of means in doing harm". In particular, they focused on:

the definition of combatants; rules relating to the means and methods of warfare; and the issue of military objectives. The Hague Conventions were largely superseded by the adoption of Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions in 1977.

Pre-WWII Geneva Conventions The involvement during the Crimean War of a number of such individuals as Florence Nightingale and Henry Dunant, a Genevese businessman who had worked with wounded soldiers at the Battle of Solferino, led to more systematic efforts to prevent the suffering of war victims. Dunant wrote a book, which he titled A Memory of Solferino, in which he described the horrors he had witnessed. His reports were so shocking that they led to the founding of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in 1863, and the convening of the first ever Geneva Conference in 1864.

The Geneva Conferences served as a forum for the adoption and revision of the Geneva Conventions as outlined below.

The 1864 conference led to the adoption of the Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded in Armies in the Field, which was subsequently revised in 1906 and 1929. The 1929 conference led to the adoption of the Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War.

The Geneva Conventions were directly inspired by the principle of humanity. They addressed the matters relating to those who are not participating in the conflict, as well as to military personnel and provided the legal basis for protection and humanitarian assistance carried out by impartial humanitarian organizations such as the ICRC.

The pre-WWII conventions were largely replaced or superseded by the adoption of the Geneva Conventions of 1949, which remain in place today.

Sources of international humanitarian law

Geneva Conventions Following World War II, the Geneva Conventions developed and agreed to between 1864 and 1929 were largely superseded by the adoption of four new Geneva Conventions in 1949, which revised and supplemented the provisions of the preceding treaties. The 1949 Conventions imposed requirements regarding the treatment of combatants and civilians in the field of battle, prisoners of war, and civilians in occupied territories.

The conventions were subsequently supplemented by two additional protocols in 1977, and a third additional protocol in 2005. The 1977 protocols adopted many elements previously included in the Hague Conventions, and established new rules for the protection of civilians in internal armed conflicts that take place within the borders of a single country. The third protocol of 2005 recognised a new protected symbol that could be used for the same purposes as the Red Cross and Red Crescent symbols.

The four original 1949 Geneva Conventions have "achieved universal participation with 194 parties". This means that they apply to almost any international armed conflict. The Additional Protocols, however, have yet to achieve near-universal acceptance, since the United States and several other significant military powers (like Iran, Israel, India and Pakistan) are currently not parties to them. Geneva Conventions of 1949

The four Geneva Conventions adopted in 1949 are as follows.

Geneva Convention I: The Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded in Armies in the Field defines "the basis on which rest the rules of international law for the protection of the victims of armed conflicts."It is the fourth iteration of the treaty, which was initially adopted in 1864 and subsequently revised and replaced in 1906 and 1929. Geneva Convention II: The Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of Wounded, Sick and Shipwrecked Members of Armed Forces at Sea adapted the main protective regime of the First Geneva Convention to combat at sea. It is a revision of a prior version adopted in 1906. Geneva Convention III: The Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War defines humanitarian protections for prisoners of war. It is a revision of a prior version adopted in 1929. Geneva Convention IV: The Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War deals with humanitarian protections for civilians during war. It was adopted for the first time in 1949. Additional protocols There are three additional protocols that supplement the provisions of the Geneva Conventions.

Protocol I (1977): Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts. As of 12 January 2007 it had been ratified by 167 countries. Protocol II (1977): Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of Non-International Armed Conflicts. As of 12 January 2007 it had been ratified by 163 countries. Protocol III (2005): Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Adoption of an Additional Distinctive Emblem. As of June 2007 it had been ratified by seventeen countries and signed but not yet ratified by an additional 68. Specific weapons treaties and subsequent instruments