ICRC
28 May 2019
At an expert meeting co-organized by the Geneva Academy and the Swiss NGO Fight for Humanity experts discussed the detention and judgment of ISIS members, including foreign fighters and their families, in North-East Syria.
In North East Syria, the Self-Administration established in 2014 has increasingly extended its area of administration according to the military advancement of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and controls, today, more than 30 percent of the Syrian territory. The SDF is currently detaining over 2,000 ISIS members from approximately 46 different nationalities, in addition to their families, in detention centres and camps in various locations in North-East Syria.
Academics and experts from various concerned countries considered the legal issues arising from the detention of ISIS members and their families, in particular, non-Syrian nationals, by the SDF and the North-East Syria Self-Administration, including their transfer, release, continued detention or trial.
‘International security and countering violent extremism experts also analysed the situation from a security point of view to minimize the risk for future security threats’ underlines Dr Annyssa Bellal, Senior Research Fellow and Strategic Adviser on International Humanitarian Law (IHL) at the Geneva Academy.
‘As different options are on the table regarding the prosecution of ISIS members currently detained in Syria, this expert discussion allowed to outline all the legal issues, national and international, that arise in this context’ underlines Professor Marco Sassòli, Director of the Geneva Academy.
Fight For Humanity published a report shortly after the meeting, and issued 10 corresponding recommendations.
News
Kyryl Savin/Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung
Discover our resources and what our experts say about the situation in Ukraine, with regular updates to include new events, articles and comments!
News
Anastasiya Marchuk is the Head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Office in Odesa, Ukraine. She is currently enrolled in our Executive Master in International Law in Armed Conflict and follows the programme online.
Short Course
ICRC
This short course, which can be followed in Geneva or online, discusses the protection offered by international humanitarian law (IHL) in non-international armed conflicts (NIACs) and addresses some problems and controversies specific to IHL of NIACs, including the difficulty to ensure the respect of IHL by armed non-state actors.
Training
Dustan Woodhouse, Unplash
This training course will explore the major international and regional instruments for the promotion of human rights, as well as with their implementation and enforcement mechanisms; and provide practical insights into the different UN human rights mechanisms pertinent to advancing environmental issues and protecting environmental human rights defenders.
Project
orihaus
This project aims at staying abreast of the various military technology trends; promoting legal and policy debate on new military technologies; and furthering the understanding of the convergent effects of different technological trends shaping the digital battlefield of the future.
Project
Shutterstock
This project will explore humanitarian consequences and protection needs caused by the digitalization of armed conflicts and the extent to which these needs are addressed by international law, especially international humanitarian law.
Publication
Publication