Capture, Detain and COIN: merged thread

[jmm99]

David, since the blogger is Mathias Vermeulen, Research assistant of Martin Scheinin, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Protection of Human Rights while Countering Terrorism, at the European University Institute.

Scheinin, Helsinginpoika, is well-known in the International Law "community" - as an advocate of a "law enforcement" approach to terrorism; that is, that International Humanitarian Law (Laws of War, Armed Conflict) is not directly applicable and that primary recourse must lie in International Human Rights Law. That is also the approach taken by our Mary Ellen O'Connell; as is exemplified in this post by Vermeulen, Last thoughts on the ‘kill-or-capture’ order of Bin Laden:http://legalift.wordpress.com/2011/0...-of-bin-laden/

I mentioned Scheinin's credentials in this post from a couple of years ago, Martin Scheinin.

To make it clear (so that no one will mistake me for what I am not), my position on Violent Non-State Actors is not defined by whether one calls them "terrorists". Below a certain violence level, they are criminals; above that level, they are combatants (albeit probably irregular and not privileged under the GCs). So, unlike Vermeulen, Scheinin and O'Connell (mentioned by me more regularly), I follow the 2001 AUMF and the Law of Armed Conflicts as being available in situations they would find exclusively belonging to "law enforcement". I also see criminal law as a useful adjunct (as I've stated numerous times).

In various cases, these people and I reach the same results; but for different reasons.

Regards

Mike