De Facto Authorities under Scrutiny: Legal and Humanitarian Obligations toward Civilian Populations under International Law

Abstract

This study aims to contribute to enriching political and legal knowledge concerning the responsibility of de facto authorities toward civilian populations under international law during armed conflicts. This comes in light of successive conflicts that scarcely subside in one place before erupting anew elsewhere, driven by political or economic objectives or by ambitions to impose control over a specific territory through the use of force.

The importance of this study lies in its approach, which highlights the significance of the principles and rules of international humanitarian law and international human rights law as instruments for safeguarding legitimate rights, protecting human existence, and shielding it from all forms of aggression or armed conflict, whether in occupied territories or elsewhere.

The study concludes that de facto authorities, regardless of their designation, bear extensive obligations, including the duty to treat humanely all persons who do not take a direct part in hostilities. This includes members of armed forces who have laid down their arms, as well as persons who are hors de combat due to sickness, injury, detention, or any other reason. International law further obliges all parties to make a clear distinction between civilians and combatants, and it regulates and legitimizes defensive measures and attacks strictly against military objectives, excluding objects of a civilian nature. It also prohibits torture, killing, looting, and inhuman treatment, and bans the use of weapons that cause excessive material or human damage or that harm the environment.

Moreover, serious violations of international humanitarian law and international criminal law previously prohibited fall within the material jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court, as they constitute crimes stipulated in the Rome Statute and therefore entail accountability. This justifies the employment of principles of international law as one of the most important and strategic legal mechanisms for confronting policies driven by power imbalances.