International Society for Military Law and the Law of War - NEWSLETTER APRIL/MAY/JUNE 2007 (Iraq, Sudan, Kosovo, Serbia, ICTY. ICTR etc.)

International Society for Military Law and the Law of War - NEWSLETTER APRIL/MAY/JUNE 2007

EDITORIAL Dear Member, The topic of extraterritorial application of human rights obligations to external operations was chosen for the keynote discussion of our last Congress. The May 2007 decision of the European Court of Human Rights in the cases Behrami and Behrami v. France and Saramati v. France, Germany and Norway, constitutes a new and important element in the ongoing discussions, especially in the context of operations under Chapter VII of the UN Charter. Both cases concern conduct of personnel of States Parties in the international civil and security presence in Kosovo. The Court held that is was not competent to review the acts of the States in question carried out on behalf of the UN. We are therefore very pleased to offer you in this newsletter inter alia a preliminary analysis of this decision. Ludwig Van Der Veken Secretary-General