A General Overview of Proportionality in IHL
Amichai Cohen, David Zlotogorski · 2021
Abstract The third chapter is intended to provide the reader with basic knowledge regarding the principle of proportionality and its context in current IHL. The chapter begins with a description of how proportionality developed in contemporary IHL, from the Lieber Code of 1863 to the First Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions in 1977. It then analyzes whether the principle of proportionality is a general principle in IHL, that requires states to minimize harm to civilians, or, as some believe, a very specific obligation that applies in specific circumstances. The chapter then places the discussion of the principle of proportionality within the wider context of the changing nature of armed conflicts. Specifically, the chapter includes a detailed discussion of the relationship between proportionality in IHL, and parallel obligations in international human rights law, which applies in many modern armed conflicts.