About

IHLToday.com is a collaborative effort of the ICT and INSCT and part of the acclaimed New Battlefield, Old Laws project. The site is intended to provide a new digital format to advance the international legal framework that has evolved for modern warfare. By combining the perspectives of scholars, practitioners, students and the media, IHLToday.com will be the premiere outlet for formal, comprehensive discourse on contemporary international humanitarian law (IHL) - also known as the laws of armed conflict (LOAC).


With the prominence of human rights organizations and the insatiable appetite of the media to cover armed conflict, today’s legal battlefield is both diffuse and multifaceted, and all too often, disconnected from the more theoretical discourse engrossing relevant academia. Furthermore, the complexities of international humanitarian law (IHL), also known as the laws of armed conflict (LOAC), are frequently misinterpreted by those promoting humanitarian interests. IHLToday.com recognizes the need for a nuanced approach to critical dialogue on IHL. The site promotes discussions aimed at highlighting the imperative issues facing today’s IHL practitioners, watchdogs and academics. By bringing these actors together in the name of cooperative discourse, IHLToday.com aims to enrich and expand the research and pragmatic applications of IHL to all its followers and participants.

IHLToday.com is an interactive forum/blog hybrid site. 

The blog - Every two weeks a relevant topic will be presented through two short 400-800 word entries by one scholar and one practitioner with opposing perspectives. Their entries will run side by side to highlight the differing opinions of each author. A section for comments will be provided directly following the entries. This will allow scholars, practitioners, students as well as the media to ask questions and pose comments to the authors, offering an accessible, online location for advanced dialogue. Though each topic will be headlined for the course of two weeks, the site will allow the debates to stay active via archive, adding searchable reference capabilities for the viewer’s convenience.  

The forum - The site encourages participants to use its forum page to create their own, unique discussion topics, especially when they are unrelated to the current blog topic. Furthermore the forum is available to continue critical dialogue and queries often limited by conference timing. The openness of the forum will allow all participants the possibility of reading and commenting on a specific thread. 


About INSCT - The Institute for National Security and Counterterrorism at Syracuse University (INSCT) is a multidisciplinary university-based community of scholars and practitioners dynamically exploring and engaging national and international security and counterterrorism challenges. http://insct.syr.edu/ 

About ICT - The Institute for Counterterrorism (ICT) at the Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya, Israel, is an independent think tank providing expertise in terrorism, counterterrorism, homeland security, threat vulnerability, risk assessment, intelligence analysis, and national security and defense policy. http://www.ict.org.il/ 

About NBOL - It has become increasingly clear that a re-examination of the policies and laws for the conduct of armed conflict is required. Toward that end, INSCT has assembled international teams of scholars and practitioners to address the considerable challenges for the future of armed conflict. http://insct.syr.edu/projects/newfrontiers/newbattlefieldsoldlaws/