Does international law still even apply?
After what has happened in the wars in Ukraine, Gaza and now between Israel and Iran, commentators are asking the fundamental question: has international law been replaced by the law of the jungle?
Call a war a war
Diena observes a trend for circumventing international law:
“No matter how much an armed conflict resembles a war to all intents and purposes, war is not officially declared on the enemy. Instead, acts of war are referred to as missions, operations, interventions or similar terms which then serve as the legal basis for the acts of war. ... International law not only imposes a number of obligations on warring states, but (more importantly) also imposes restrictions on third states in relation to those states. If there is no formal declaration of war, then supposedly, there is no war and no grounds for accusations of supporting a warring party or other violations of international law.”
Taken with a pinch of salt
Die Presse analyses the legal standing of the war between Israel and Iran:
“International law is one of the losers of this war. The justification for this war was dubious and based on unsubstantiated revelations from Israeli intelligence reports according to which Tehran had made more progress in developing nuclear warheads than was widely documented. However, Western intelligence agencies, including those of US and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), have considerable doubts about this version.”
Glaring double standards
International law has been trampled by the powerful states, comments Star:
“The US attack on Iran is yet another reminder that international law only applies to weak states. For the powerful states and for the protégés of powerful states there is no such thing as international law. ... When Russia annexes Crimea or occupies Ukrainian territory, international law doesn't apply. When the US invades Iraq for no reason, and hundreds of thousands die, international law doesn't apply. For Israel, a US protégé, international law doesn't exist.”
Chaos as a strategy
El País pinpoints four politicians with one dangerous thing in common:
“There are profound differences between Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Benjamin Netanyahu and Ali Khamenei as leaders. ... But they share a characteristic that is fundamental to understanding this new era we are now entering: a willingness to create chaos in the world in order to advance national or personal interests. ... There have always been masters of chaos: usually men, not women. ... The difference between this era and past ones is that this one displays a high degree of structural instability. ... Regardless of the specific goals, this policy of chaos undermines the rules that distinguish a civilised society from a jungle. It won't come as a surprise to anyone that neither the US nor Russia nor Israel nor Iran are members of the International Criminal Court.”