State Responsibility And Terrorism

The rules of state responsibility have an important but under-utilized role to play in the terrorism context. They determine both whether a breach of primary obligations has occurred, through the rules of attribution, and the consequences which flow from that breach, including the possible adoption of responsive measures by injured states. This book explores the substantive international legal obligations and rules of state responsibility applicable to international terrorism and examines the problems and prospects for effectively holding states responsible for internationally wrongful acts related to terrorism. In particular, it analyses the way in which the implementation of state responsibility for international terrorism may be affected by the self-determination debate, any applicable lex specialis (including the jus in bello), and sub-systems of international law (such as the WTO-), as well as the interaction between determinations of individual criminal responsibility and the implementation of state responsibility. The international community has responded to the threat of international terrorism both through a security/jus ad bellum paradigm and by creating an international criminal law framework to address the conduct of non-state terrorist actors. The secondary rules of state responsibility analysed in this book cut across both approaches as they apply, whether states breaching their primary obligations relating to terrorism through participation in or a failure to prevent or punish terrorism. While this book identifies a number of problems in implementing state responsibility for international terrorism, it also highlights the prospects for the rules of state responsibility to make a crucial contribution to maintaining respect for obligations which lie at the very foundations of the contemporary international legal order, and to restoring the relationships between states if those obligations are breached.

This timely book discusses the problem of State responsibility in connection with terrorist acts committed by non-State actors. It provides a detailed assessment of the consequences of wrongful acts of the State using contemporary examples such as the Bosnian Genocide, 9/11, and the 2016 and 2020 Nice attacks.

Winner of the 2007 Paul Guggenheim Prize! Today's terrorists possess unprecedented power, but the State still plays a crucial role in the success or failure of their plans. Terrorists count on governmental inaction, toleration or support. And citizens look to the State to protect them from the dangers that these terrorists pose. But the rules of international law that regulate State responsibility for preventing terrorism were crafted for a different age. They are open to abuse and poorly suited to hold States accountable for sponsoring or tolerating contemporary terrorist activity. It is time that these rules were reconceived. Tal Becker's incisive and ground-breaking book analyses the law of State responsibility for non-State violence and examines its relevance in a world coming to terms with the threat of catastrophic terrorism. The book sets out the legal duties of States to prevent, and abstain from supporting, terrorist activity and explores how to maximise State compliance with these obligations. Drawing on a wealth of precedents and legal sources, the book offers an innovative approach to regulating State responsibility for terrorism, inspired by the principles and philosophy of causation. In so doing, it presents a new conceptual and legal framework for dealing with the complex interactions between State and non-State actors that make terrorism possible, and offers a way to harness international law to enhance human security in a post-9/11 world.

The book offers several perspectives to the analysis of the expansion and diversification of international legal responses to terrorism. It focuses, in particular, on the move during the past decade towards more indirect forms of responsibility.

UN organs play a significant role in implementing the law of state responsibility in global security contexts. This book analyses how the ICJ, the General Assembly and the Security Council contribute to the implementation of the laws of State responsibility, using transnational terrorism as its principal case study.

The book offers several perspectives to the analysis of the expansion and diversification of international legal responses to terrorism. It focuses, in particular, on the move during the past decade towards more indirect forms of responsibility.

In our post-11 September world, challenges to international peace and security emanate from non-State actors as never before. Under international law States have an obligation to act with due diligence in confronting non-State actors that engage in terrorism. The author of this book examines the grounds and mechanisms through which a State can bear responsibility for breaching its due diligence obligations in this regard. He explores the question whether a comprehensive definition of terrorism exists and reviews the development of the due diligence principle during the last century. After doing so, the author examines how the due diligence principle operates in the counter-terrorism context by analysing international and regional treaties and Security Council Resolutions. Theoretical issues that arise when interpreting the due diligence principle are also studied. The author concludes by critically engaging with the question whether national security should trump human rights in the fight against terrorism. This book fills a significant gap in the literature. It is principally designed for policy makers, academics, and students of international law.

In our post-11 September world, challenges to international peace and security emanate from non-State actors as never before. Under international law States have an obligation to act with due diligence in confronting non-State actors that engage in terrorism. The author of this book examines the grounds and mechanisms through which a State can bear responsibility for breaching its due diligence obligations in this regard. He explores the question whether a comprehensive definition of terrorism exists and reviews the development of the due diligence principle during the last century. After doing so, the author examines how the due diligence principle operates in the counter-terrorism context by analysing international and regional treaties and Security Council Resolutions. Theoretical issues that arise when interpreting the due diligence principle are also studied. The author concludes by critically engaging with the question whether national security should trump human rights in the fight against terrorism. This book fills a significant gap in the literature. It is principally designed for policy makers, academics, and students of international law.