Protection of civilians in armed conflicts karabakh (case study)

Introduction:

The international humanitarian law has undergone remarkable and justifiable development since the beginning of the last century. It became more concerned about the distinction between people involved in military operations and the civilian population who must be protected as much as possible from the impacts of conflict, through the principles of proportionality and distinction between armed forces that carry out hostilities and civilians who are not presumed to directly participate in those operations. And since conflicts are a reality that cannot be ignored, it was necessary to intervene to ease the impact of these conflicts on humans in general and on the victims of the conflict in particular. Therefore, the rules of international humanitarian law derived from specific conventions such as the Hague rules relating to the laws and customs of land war and the four Geneva Conventions and the two additional Protocols attached to these agreements, have developed. All these principles and rules have raised humanitarian considerations, and the international community has sought through them to alleviate the scourge of wars on civilians, as well as on combatants who can no longer fight. For example, the international humanitarian law prohibits weapons that cause unnecessary suffering or are indiscriminate by nature and that cannot be directed at a specific target in order to reduce civilian casualties such as cluster munitions and anti-personnel mines. It is also prohibited to target objects indispensable to the survival of civilians. The international humanitarian law also protects children and women, as they are among the most vulnerable groups affected by these hostilities. Although international humanitarian law prohibits targeting civilians in both international armed conflicts and non-international armed ones, parties to the conflict continue to deliberately target civilians, as in the case of Armenia and Azerbaijan, which resulted in the displacement of 90640 individuals. According to the Armenian national statistics, the population in Artsakh, Nagorno-Karabakh, was estimated at about 145,000 individuals, which means that during the 44-day war, up to 110,000 people were forcibly displaced or evacuated from their homes. Furthermore, many civilians were killed and forcibly detained by the Turkish-backed Azerbaijani forces. In this light, this study discusses the protection of civilians in accordance with the four Geneva Conventions, including the protection of civilians under occupation, and the process of targeting civilians and the use of prohibited weapons in Artsakh region. Moreover, it highlights the effects of that war and the challenges it posed on civilians.

 

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