The IIJ is pleased to invite you to the third virtual meeting for this year. The main theme is "Counter-terrorism and International Humanitarian Law: legal tensions, practical challenges, and possible solutions" presented by David McKeever. This event will be in English with the possibility of asking questions in Arabic and French. Please note that this event is available only for members of our Alumni Portal.
"Counter-terrorism and International Humanitarian Law: legal tensions, practical challenges, and possible solutions":
The interaction of international counter-terrorism laws with IHL is an area of renewed focus, amid widespread concern that the former are being (mis)applied to criminalise the provision of humanitarian assistance envisaged under the latter. The Foreign Terrorist Fighter phenomenon, and the fact of terrorist organisations being parties to armed conflicts in multiple countries, led the Security Council to pay greater attention to this issue. Difficult questions of law and fact remain, however, with significant practical consequences—for humanitarian agencies and those they seek to assist, as well as for States that must weigh different, and possibly conflicting, legal obligations.
This talk will outline the main characteristics of the two legal regimes - ways in which they are aligned but also some areas of possible tension and the practical consequences of those tensions. It will also discuss some of the solutions being developed by States and international organisations to ensure that these two legal regimes can be applied together, in a manner which facilitates rather than impedes achievement of their respective goals.
The Speaker:
David McKeever is an international law expert with 15 years of progressive experience, specializing in public international law, human rights law, counter-terrorism, and refugee law. His prior experience includes UNHCR (2002-2008, in Sudan, Benin, Thailand, Georgia, Tanzania) and the International Court of Justice (2010-2015). Since 2016 he has worked as Legal Officer with the UN Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED), in CTED's Section for Europe, Middle East and Central Asia. He has published and taught on many areas of international law. He holds Masters' Degrees in Law from the University of Oxford and University of Cambridge, and was called to the Bar of England and Wales in 2010.
