Conference: New Technologies and International Legal Accountability

On October 22-23, 2026, a conference will be held on "New Technologies and International Legal Accountability," both online and at the University of Perugia. The program is here. Registration is here.

Quackelbeen: Judicial Discretion in the Interpretation of International Crimes: Revisiting the Legality Principle

Ligeia Quackelbeen (Tilburg Univ. - Law) has published Judicial Discretion in the Interpretation of International Crimes: Revisiting the Legality Principle (Hart Publishing 2026). Here's the abstract:

This book sets out a legality-centred model to better understand the interpretation of crimes in international criminal law.

It offers a new way of understanding the interpretation of crime as a two-dimensional process: determining what the law is and interpreting whether that law in fact criminalises the conduct in question. This model affects the process and the outcome of judicial interpretation. The book moves beyond the abstract by applying the model to two case studies: (1) organisational policy as a contextual element of crimes against humanity, and (2) the crime of forced marriage. It brings often-overlooked criminal law theory into the field of international criminal law, offering a fresh, innovative perspective on interpretation and placing the legality principle back at the centre of crime interpretation.

Call for Submissions: Central Asia Yearbook on International Law

A call for submissions has been issued for volume 2 of the Central Asia Yearbook of International Law. The call is here.

Cakal: Torture and the Recognition of Psychological Suffering in International Law

Ergün Cakal (Univ. of Copenhagen - Law) has published Torture and the Recognition of Psychological Suffering in International Law (Oxford Univ. Press 2026). Here's the abstract:

Torture and the Recognition of Psychological Suffering in International Law finds that psychological suffering has posed difficulties for international human rights advocates and adjudicators working on the prohibition of torture and inhuman and degrading treatment. A systematic survey of the relevant international caselaw, the book presents, reveals a vast variation in how psychological suffering is found to violate the prohibition (or not). When singled out in cases brought before the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR), and the UN Committee Against Torture (CAT), psychological suffering has never been specifically categorized as torture. What is more, psychological suffering has often been excluded altogether from the purview of the prohibition, categorized instead as ‘lawful sanctions’ or as falling below the ‘minimum level of severity’ threshold, and therefore not found to be a violation. Coupling caselaw analysis and interviews, this book provides numerous inter-related reasons: that socio-political standards recognizing the significance of psychological suffering are selectively applied or altogether overlooked; that categorization is subject to caution and conservatism; that scientific expertise documenting health impacts has not compelled adjudicators in all cases; and that interpretation still depends on sense-centric reasoning (intuition–emotion–presumption), potentially undercutting scientific expertise and perpetuating preconceptions associating severe suffering with the physical.

New Volume: Yearbook of International Disaster Law

The latest volume of the Yearbook of International Disaster Law (Vol. 7, 2024) is out. Contents include:

• Thematic Section: ‘Armed Conflicts and Disasters’
• Gloria Gaggioli, The Relationship between Disaster Law and International Humanitarian Law: Reflections on Draft Article 18(2) of the ILC Draft Articles on the Protection of Persons in the Event of Disasters
• Liam Bagshaw, Analysing the Disaster Risk Reduction Obligations of Occupying Powers
• Mina Radončić, The Underdogs of Disaster Response? The Legal Framework Governing the Conduct of Organised Armed Groups in Disaster Settings
• General Section
• Gian Luca Burci & Claudia Nannini, Amending the International Health Regulations (2005): Technical Progress or Political Advancement?
• Enrico Milano, A Model for Interaction between the International Law Commission and the Sixth Committee of the UN General Assembly: The Draft Articles on the Protection of Persons in the Event of Disaster
• Anna Marie Brennan, Outer Space Law and Disaster Management on Future Extraterrestrial Human Settlements: Constructing an Interstellar Governance Framework
• Claire Methven O’Brien & Agustín Miguel Lago-Montúfar, Post-Disaster Public Procurement: Achieving Resilience through Sustainability and Human Rights Due Diligence
• Fia Hamid-Walker, Situating Historical Disaster Governance in Indonesia: Feminist TWAIL Critique of Colonial and International Legal Orders
• Emika Tokunaga, The Protection of Persons and Assistance in the Event of Disasters: Japan’s Triple Disaster
• Holly Faulkner, From Black Swans to Legal Black Elephants: Analysis of Aotearoa New Zealand’s Disaster Preparedness Frameworks

Call for Submissions: Max Planck Yearbook of United Nations Law

The Max Planck Yearbook of United Nations Law has issued a call for submissions for its Volume 30 for contributions for "a special thematic forum examining a central yet relatively under-explored dimension of international law in practice: the structure, functioning, and evolution of the diverse institutions and entities that comprise the wider United Nations (UN) system, including subsidiary organs, specialised agencies, related organisations, and other components of the broader UN-centred multilateral framework." The call is here. Abstracts are due by August 28, 2026.

Call for Engaged Listeners: Human Rights: Rising under Distress? The African Court at 20

To mark the 20th anniversary of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law is hosting a one-day workshop on October 14, 2026. The topic is: "Human Rights: Rising under Distress? The African Court at 20." A limited number of places are available for engaged listeners, who will participate in the workshop as audience members. Details on how to apply are here.

Cavari, Efrat, & Yair: Contemplating Conquest: Public Opinion on the Forcible Seizure of Territory

Amnon Cavari (Reichman Univ.), Asif Efrat (Reichman Univ.), & Omer Yair (Reichman Univ.) have posted Contemplating Conquest: Public Opinion on the Forcible Seizure of Territory (PS: Political Science & Politics, forthcoming). Here's the abstract:

The norm against conquest—a central tenet of the international order—is eroding. This study is among the first to examine public support for this norm, using a real-world case: Israel’s seizure of Syrian territory following the collapse of the Assad regime in December 2024. Our survey experiment in Israel reveals that citizens are sensitive to the prohibition on conquest. They demonstrate greater support for an occupation that involves only military control of the forcibly seized territory and weaker support for civilian settlement in or annexation of the foreign territory: policies that amount to conquest. Our finding—a stronger preference for legally acceptable occupation over illegal settlement or annexation—sends a positive signal for the constraining power of norms.

Hilpold: Neutrality in the Age of the UN Charter, with Special Consideration of the Ukraine Conflict

Peter Hilpold (Univ. of Innsbruck - Law) has published Neutrality in the Age of the UN Charter, with Special Consideration of the Ukraine Conflict (Nomos 2026). The table of contents is here. The book is available open access. Here's the abstract:

The war in Ukraine has tested core elements of contemporary international law. Against this backdrop, the continued viability of neutrality under international law has come under renewed scrutiny. This volume brings together experts from Austria, Switzerland, Germany, and Italy to examine the issue from the perspectives of international, public, and European law, as well as history. They conclude that, within the United Nations peace-law framework, states are obliged to show solidarity with the victim of aggression, and that neutrality may ultimately jeopardize even the security of neutral states.

New Issue: International Review of the Red Cross

The latest issue of the International Review of the Red Cross (Vol. 108, no. 931, 2026) is out. The theme is: "Upholding Humanity in War." Contents include:

• Upholding humanity in war – the ICRC’s Global Initiative to Galvanize Political Commitment to International Humanitarian Law: Interview with Cordula Droege and Anne Quintin
• Leveraging research on norm and behaviour change to better prevent violations of IHL: Interview with Sophie Legros
• Etienne Kuster, The ICRC and academia: An untold story about preserving humanity in war through international humanitarian law
• Luke Moffett, Steven van de Put, Mark Lattimer, & Mae Thompson, Upholding humanity: The role of redress in preventing and responding to civilian harm
• Jody M. Prescott, Internalizing IHL: Melding humanitarian law with military ethics for junior leaders
• Steve Martial Tiwa Fomekong, The African Union’s Peace and Security Council and the strengthening of international humanitarian law
• Nigeria’s National Committee on the Implementation of IHL: Interview with Abimbola Ajileye
• Cristina Azzarello, Tommaso Natoli, & Giulio Bartolini, “Bringing IHL home”: The case study of Italy and the Italian Red Cross
• Anna Kaufmann, Pranamie Mandalawatta, & Claire Cayzer, An Australian perspective on the role of national IHL committees in fostering government and National Society collaboration
• Jean Franco Olivera Astete & Juan José Alencastro Moya, Why do we need national IHL committees? Experiences, challenges and opportunities from Latin America
• International humanitarian law and mediation – building pathways to peace: Interview with Ghassan Elkahlout
• Simon Robins & Jill Stockwell, Missing persons and peacebuilding: The transformative role of families of the missing
• Ioanna Voudouri, Two wrongs don’t make a right: Reflections on reciprocity and its impact on the path to peace
• Caroline Baudot, Tobias Ehret, David Kaelin, & Marnie Lloydd, Beyond infrastructure: The protection of essential services personnel in the spirit of international humanitarian law
• Bárbara Morais Figueiredo, Strengthening the protection of civilian infrastructure in armed conflict: Practical measures to operationalize IHL and reduce civilian harm
• Protection of hospitals: Interview with Nicolas Gérard, Claire Bertouille, Vaios Koutroulis and Claude Maon
• Thibaud Jourdan, When loss of protection does not permit attack: Distinguishing acts harmful to the enemy from the notion of military objectives
• Upholding IHL in the use of ICTs during armed conflict – key legal and humanitarian considerations: Interview with Kubo Mačák, Mariana Salazar Albornoz and Mohamed Helal
• Marta Stroppa, The use of autonomous cyber capabilities in armed conflict and States’ due diligence obligations to avoid unintended violations of international humanitarian law
• The law of naval warfare – perspectives from an archipelagic State: Interview with Ambassador Dindin Wahyudin
• Prize law: Unjustifiable in the twenty-first century? Interview with Professor Andrew Clapham
• Dita Liliansa, Belligerent activities in neutral exclusive economic zones: Balancing war and neutrality in contemporary naval warfare
• Some current (and enduring) challenges in the application and interpretation of the law of naval warfare Rob McLaughlin
• Pornomo Rovan Astri Yoga, Between warships and merchant ships: The legal status, operational functions and targeting rules of auxiliary vessels
• Barbara Stępień, Sea drones: warships or weapons? Legal status and implications
• Dale Stephens & Abby Zeith, Waging war at sea: Land warfare but just add water?

New Issue: Journal of International Wildlife Law & Policy

The latest issue of the Journal of International Wildlife Law & Policy (Vol. 29, no. 3, 2026) is out. Contents include:

• Caroline Cox & Meganne Natali, Protecting Wildlife in Europe: A Comprehensive Analysis of Legislative Frameworks and Their Shortcomings
• Jenny Bass, Giving the Convention on Biological Diversity Teeth by Implementing an Invasive Alien Species Humane Framework that Balances Ecosystem Health with Animal Dignity#
• Elke Hellinx, Deconstructing International Wildlife Law: Policy Instruments in International Wildlife Treaties
• A. Carleton, Conceptions of Wild Animal Ownership in Kenya: Rights of Access, Protection and Semantics
• Thakurdas Jana, Swayam Prabha Satpathy & Tarun Tapas Mukherjee, The Zoological Enclosure as a Colonial Theatre of Power, Control and Domination: A Case Study of Alipore Zoo, Calcutta

New Issue: International Criminal Law Review

The latest issue of the International Criminal Law Review (Vol. 26, no. 4, 2026) is out. Contents include:

• Viktor Shevchuk, Volodymyr Zhuravel, Dmytro Zatenatskyi, Svetlana Yevdokimenko, & Inna Kolesnikova, Innovative Criminalistic Tools and Technologies in the Fight Against Corruption: Ukrainian Realities and International Experience
• Karolina Aksamitowska, Universal Jurisdiction and the Operationalization of the Principle of Complementarity in the Context of Joint Investigations Teams and Novel Accountability Hubs
• Alfredo Liñán Lafuente, The Connection Requirement and Discrimination in the Crime Against Humanity of Persecution: Two Theses that Contradict the Case Law of the International Criminal Court
• Lodovica Raparelli, Speaking Their Language: Legal Design for Victim Engagement at the International Criminal Court
• Iryna Marchuk, The Return of a Long-Forgotten War Crime of Forced Conscription: Ukrainian Domestic Case Law and Its Significance for International Criminal Law

New Issue: International Theory

The latest issue of International Theory (Vol. 18, no. 2, July 2026) is out. Contents include:

• Constanza Guajardo, The ethics of the international monetary system
• Joseph MacKay, Realism, ideology, and exile
• Brandon K. Yoder, Reassurance versus coercive bargaining: barriers to cooperative signaling in international relations
• Symposium
• Thomas Kwasi Tieku, J. Andrew Grant, & Karolina Werner, African systems of thought and IR: the road to epistemic justice
• Lina Benabdallah, Contrapuntal reading of ‘Africa rising’: seeing Africa in International Relations beyond the exceptional
• W. R. Nadège Compaoré, Pan-Africanism or Black internationalism? Evoking African political thought as political activism
• Evelyn Namakula-Mayanja & Afua Boatemaa Yakohene, International Relations in Africa: not without Indigenous knowledge systems
• Mohamed Sesay, Rectifying injustices against humanity: communitarianism, Ubuntu, and restoration
• Peace A. Medie, African feminisms in International Relations
• Fikir Haile & Badriyya Yusuf, IR Resource Bank: a tool for diversifying and decolonizing the curriculum

New Volume: Australian International Law Journal

The latest volume of the Australian International Law Journal (Vol. 31, 2024) is out. Contents include:

• Articles
• Vicky Waye, Comity and Coherence? Quo Vadis for Cross-Border Class Actions
• Nathan Tsang, Digital Assets and the Lex Situs Rule: A 'Decentralisation' Approach
• Nina Spencer, Fictions and Fences: Traditional Knowledge and Genetic Resources in International Law
• Emily Crawford, Rain Liivoja, & Alison Pert, The Use and Misuse of the Red Cross Emblem in Australia
• Lara Pratt, Cultural Heritage Destruction as a Peacetime Crime against Humanity: Wartime Origins as a Hurdle to Prosecution
• Andreea Lachsz, Access Not Denied: The UN's New Guidance on Torture Prevention Bodies' Unfettered Access to All 'Places of Deprivation of Liberty', including during Police Stops and Searches and at Public Assemblies
• Nicolas Carrillo Santarelli & Francesco Seatzu, The Protection of Future Generations as an Imperative of Inter-Generational Solidarity
• Marcelo Feitosa de Paula Dias, Traceability Technologies as a Game Changer for Global Native Forest Conservation: A Data-Driven Pathway to Achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals
• Rebecca Paradellas Barrozo, When What Is Washed Stains: Money Laundering Allegations in Recent Investment Arbitration Decisions
• Jessica C. Tselepy, More than Property: A Critical Analysis of EC-Seal Products
• Hussein Badreddine, Legal Evolution in Outer Space: Assessing the Viability of Space Mining
• Case Notes
• Dan Ziebarth, Request Submitted to the Tribunal by the Commission of Small Island States on Climate Change and International Law
• Zachary Pico, Semenya v Switzerland (2023)
• Nicholas Athanasiou, Verein KlmimaSeniorinnen Schweiz v. Switzerland: Another Positive Step for Human-Rights Based Climate Litigation

New Issue: Harvard International Law Journal

The latest issue of the Harvard International Law Journal (Vol. 67, no. 2, Spring 2026) is out. Contents include:

• Batuhan Betin, Article 62 Intervention Before the ICJ Based on Common Interests and Obligations Erga Omnes
• Henry Off, Crimes of Law: Bringing Legal Professionals to Trial for International Crimes
• Tamar Luster, Litigating Slow Violence: Deprivation in Gaza, Humanitarian Aid, and the Limits of International Humanitarian Law
• Rosalind Dixon & David Landau, Utopian Constitutionalism

New Issue: Yale Journal of International Law

The latest issue of the Yale Journal of International Law (Vol. 51, no. 2, 2026) is out. Contents include:

• Leo You Li, The Faces of Judicial Data Governance
• Cody Corliss, The War Crime of Spreading Terror
• Ding Yuan, The Legitimacy Lever in Africa-ICC Politics Note

New Issue: International Organization

The latest issue of International Organization (Vol. 80, no. 3, Summer 2026) is out. Contents include:

• Articles
• Megan A. Stewart, Revolutionizing Time, Reforging Social Orders: State-Building Success and the Enforcement of Symbolic Programs in Revolutionary France
• Daniel B. Jones, Erica Owen, & Rena Sung, Relative Exposure to Negative Economic Shocks, Racial Animus, and Voting
• Alejandro Milcíades Peña & Thomas Davies, Social Movements and International Order Formation
• Monica Widmann, Democracy, Debt, and the Bench: Political Ideology in Sovereign Immunity Cases
• Scott Wolford, Joshua Landry, & Kevin Galambos, Collective Deterrence
• Boyd van Dijk, Norm Making from the Margins: Armed Groups, the Algerian War, and South–South Legal Politics
• Research Notes
• Jessica S. Sun, Protecting at Home or Providing Abroad: Refugee Policy in Civil Conflicts
• Santi Foncillas, Erasmus Kersting, & Christopher Kilby, Dirty Work and the Domestic Politics of Aid

New Issue: International Legal Materials

The latest issue of International Legal Materials (Vol. 65, no. 4, August 2026) is out. Contents include:

• Advisory Opinion AO-32/25 Requested by Chile and Colom. – Climate Emergency & H.R. (Inter-Am. Ct. H.R.), with introductory note by Rosa Celorio & Naomi Adefris
• Advisory Opinion on Obligations of States in Respect of Climate Change (I.C.J.), with introductory note by Nathaniel Khng & Bryce Rudyk
• Convention on the Protection of the Environment Through Criminal Law (Council Eur.), with introductory note by Anne Dienelt

New Issue: Military Law and the Law of War Review / Revue de Droit Militaire et de Droit de la Guerre

The latest issue of the Military Law and the Law of War Review / Revue de Droit Militaire et de Droit de la Guerre (Vol. 64, no. 1, 2026) is out. Contents include:

• Winthrop Wells, Military information and accountability for international crimes in Ukraine
• Winthrop Wells, Battlefield evidence in Syria/Iraq and Ukraine: legal and strategic implications
• Quinten DeGroote, Preparing Europe for cyber warfare: applying peacetime International Humanitarian Law to the European Union’s Readiness 2030 Initiative
• Ronald Alcala & Hitoshi Nasu, On the purpose limb of the military objective test under the law of targeting
• Loïc Vandeput, White lie or IHL violation? An IHL analysis of the disinformation campaign against Syria Civil Defence (the White Helmets)

New Issue: Asian Journal of International Law

The latest issue of the Asian Journal of International Law (Vol. 16, no. 2, July 2026) is out. Contents include:

• Notes and Comments
• Kai Tik AU YEUNG, Significance of Coordination: A Comparison between the Cape Town Convention and Hague Securities Convention
• Invited Article
• Sundaresh MENON, International Law in Unprecedented Times – and Our Role in Shaping It
• Articles
• Sijie WANG, “Legislative Power”of the United Nations Security Council: A Step Too Far?
• Nina ARANETA-ALANA, Jeremy FARRALL, Jolyon FORD & Imogen SAUNDERS, Populism and Institutional Fortitude: Philippine Engagement aith International Law and Institutions During the Duterte Administration
• Javier Sebastian ESKAURIATZA, An Evaluation of the“Legacy Jurisdiction”of the International Criminal Court: The Philippines Investigation
• Hojjat SALIMI TURKAMANI, Climate Finance for Energy Transition with Focus on Cost of Phasing Out Fossil Fuel
• Ashkan SHOKRI, Sovereignty in Cyberspace from the Viewpoint of International Law
• Pouria ASKARY & Katayoun HOSSEINNEJAD, Beginning of International Armed Conflict in the Case of Targeted Killing of Military Personnel in a Third State
• Antal BERKES, International Law without Statehood: The Outlier Application of International Law by Eurasian De Facto Regimes

New Issue: Human Rights Quarterly

The latest issue of the Human Rights Quarterly (Vol. 48, no. 3, August 2026) is out. Contents include:

• Jessica Anania & Jamie L. Shenk, Silent Signaling: Norm Diffusion and LGBTI Rights in Transitional Justice
• Ge Chen, Freedom of Sexual Expression Under Absorptive Censorship in China
• Rhoda E. Howard-Hassmann, Trans and Women's Rights
• Patient Mpunga-Biayi, The Advisory Function of the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights
• Changfeng Yan & Li Nawen, Legal and Ethical Principles of Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection
• Surya P. Subedi, A Cross-Cultural Understanding of Human Rights in International Legal Discourse

New Issue: Asia-Pacific Journal of Ocean Law and Policy

The latest issue of the Asia-Pacific Journal of Ocean Law and Policy (Vol. 11, no. 1, 2026) is out. Contents include:

• Yoshifumi Tanaka, Reflections on the Prevention of Vessel-Source Marine Pollution from Scrubber Discharges: Any Lessons for Green Shipping?
• Jianping Guo & Louis McDonough Monroy, Implications of the ITLOS Climate Change Advisory Opinion on International Fisheries Law
• Chuanliang Wang, Xinle Chen, & Zhe Yang, The Impacts of the Shiprider Agreements on the Maritime Rights: A Chinese Perspective
• Wei-Chung Chen, A Study on the Taiwan-Japan Fisheries Agreement for Fisheries Co-management: Insights from International Law and Practice
• Kim-Ngan Vu & Ngoc-Ha Nguyen, Vietnam’s Fisheries Subsidies Regulations: How to Contribute to the Achievement of 14.6 Sustainable Development Goal?
• Parineeta Goswami, Nisha Sachdeva, & Aarushi Goswami, Blue Carbon Governance in the Asia-Pacific: Legal Strategies For Marine Climate Resilience
• Ishrat Jahan, Intersection of the Legal Personhood of Rivers and the Law of the Sea in the Context of Bangladesh
• Candice Visser & Clive Schofield, Stability and Certainty Secured?: Implications of the International Court of Justice Advisory Opinion on the Obligations of States in Respect of Climate Change for Baselines and Maritime Zonal Limits

New Issue: Journal of Global Health Law

The latest issue of the Journal of Global Health Law (Vol. 3, no. 1, 2026) is out. Contents include:

• Lina De Witte, The PFAS Restriction Proposal: the first step towards a new era of chemicals regulation?
• Chidi Oguamanam, Re-inventing global public health in the shadow of COVID-19: decentring intellectual property in International Health Regulations (IHR) and the Pandemic Agreement for SDGs
• Sylvain Aubry, Pierre Walckiers, & Christine Frison, Keep talking while everything gets sequenced: how the Pandemic Agreement, global health, and genetic resource governance are keeping pace with digitisation?
• Siobhán Wills, Diogo Cabral, & Ulisses Terto Neto, Racialised police violence and states’ obligation to respect the human right to the social, psychosocial and environmental determinants of mental health
• Kailing Marcus & Stéphanie Dagron, Achieving Universal Health Coverage as a practical expression of the right to health: what can China’s legal framework tell us?
• David W Patterson, The climate crisis is a right to health crisis: lessons from the HIV pandemic for the UN General Assembly and UN system-wide climate action
• Milou Vlaskamp, The ICJ Climate Change Advisory Opinion: engagement with One Health approaches

Call for Contributions: Old Doctrines, New Battles: The Future of the Rules-Based International Order in Latin America and the Caribbean

Völkerrechtsblog has issued a call for contributions on "Old Doctrines, New Battles: The Future of the Rules-Based International Order in Latin America and the Caribbean." The call is here.

New Issue: Questions of International Law

The latest issue of Questions of International Law / Questioni di Diritto Internazionale (no. 116, 2026) is out. Contents include:

• Foreign investment in occupied territories: What lessons from current practice?
• Introduced by Carlo de Stefano
• Erik W. Brouwer, The territorial scope of bilateral investment agreements in the context of occupied territories: The quest for a bigger picture
• Marco Argentini, The circulation of the Crimea Awards: Annulment, enforcement and State immunity pleas
• Mirko Camanna, Denial of benefits clauses in wartime: From prevention of treaty shopping to geopolitical function?
• Fabrizio Marrella, Armed Conflicts in International Investment Arbitration
• Marco Longobardo & Federica Violi, Foreign Investment in Occupied Territory: The Role of Third States and Non-State Actors in International Humanitarian Law, Investment Law, and Business and Human Rights
• Alessandra Arcuri, Jus Cogens and International Investment Law in Occupied Territories: Dangerous Relations