The war in Ukraine and the laws of war
Attacks by Russian forces against Ukrainian civilians, schools, hospitals and non-military targets are war crimes under international law.
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Russia began a war against Ukraine on Feb 24. Since then, Russian bombs, missiles and artillery shells have killed Ukrainian civilians, destroyed schools, hospitals and many residential buildings. Several friends have asked me whether there is any international law which prohibits attacks against civilians and public infrastructure. Another asked whether there is any international law against the use of chemical, biological and tactical nuclear weapons. In this essay, I will try to answer these questions.
I want to begin by paying a tribute to a visionary Swiss man, Mr Henry Dunant. In 1859, there was a battle between France and its Italian ally on the one side and Austria on the other. The battle over the struggle for Italian unification was fought in Solferino and won by France and its Italian ally. When the war was over, many wounded soldiers were left to die on the battlefield.
