Transnational Crimes, Terrorism and Torture

Robert Cryer; Hakan Friman; Darryl Robinson; Elizabeth Wilmshurst

doi:10.1017/CBO9780511760808.015

14 - Transnational Crimes, Terrorism and Torture

from PART D - SUBSTANTIVE LAW OF INTERNATIONAL CRIMES

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 June 2012

Darryl Robinson and

Robert Cryer: Affiliation:
University of Birmingham
Hakan Friman: Affiliation:
University College London
Darryl Robinson: Affiliation:
Queen's University, Ontario
Elizabeth Wilmshurst: Affiliation:
University College London

Book contents

Get access

Summary

Introduction

Overview

To focus only on the ‘core crimes’ and their prosecution would be to ignore a substantial area of criminal law with international implications; there are other crimes of international concern which have a huge impact on people throughout the world and on global economic development. Crimes which are the subject of international suppression Conventions but for which there is as yet no international criminal jurisdiction, are the focus of this chapter. They are here termed ‘transnational crimes’. Like the core crimes, these are crimes which have actual or potential transboundary effect or which are intra-State but which offend a fundamental value of the international community.

The prevention and punishment of transnational crimes requires cooperation among governments and among law enforcement agencies. A growing number of agreements are being concluded to provide for this in relation to such crimes as drugs trafficking, piracy, slavery, terrorism offences, torture, apartheid, enforced disappearances, transnational organized crime including people trafficking, smuggling migrants and illegal arms trafficking, and corruption. Some of these are also covered by customary international law or are international crimes when committed in certain circumstances (for example as crimes against humanity). They include those which were listed as ‘treaty crimes’ in the ILC draft of the ICC Statute, but which were excluded from the Rome Statute in the course of the negotiations.

Information

Type: Chapter
Information: An Introduction to International Criminal Law and Procedure , pp. 334 - 358

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511760808.015 [Opens in a new window]

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Print publication year: 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Book purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

Bassiouni, M. Cherif (ed.), International Criminal Law, 3rd edn (New York, 2008), vol. I.

M. Cherif, Bassiouni, ‘Enslavement’ in ibid., 535.

Roger, Clark, ‘Offences of International Concern: Multilateral Treaty Practice in the Forty Years since Nuremberg’ (1988) 57 Nordic Journal of International Law49.Google Scholar

Alexandra, Orlova and Moore, James, ‘“Umbrellas” or “Building Blocks”?: Defining International Terrorism and Transnational Organized Crime in International Law’ (2005) 27 Houston Journal of International Law267.Google Scholar

Bianchi, Andrea (ed.), Enforcing International Law Norms against Terrorism (Hart, 2004).

Helen, Duffy, The ‘War on Terror’ and the Framework of International Law (Cambridge, 2005).Google Scholar

John, Dugard, ‘International Terrorism and the Just War’ (1977) 12 Stanford Journal of International Studies21.Google Scholar

Higgins, Rosalyn and Flory, Maurice (eds.), Terrorism and International Law (London, 1997).CrossRef

Christopher, Joyner, ‘Suppression of Terrorism on the High Seas: the 1988 IMO Convention on the Safety of Maritime Navigation’ (1989) 19 Israel Journal on Human Rights343.Google Scholar

Nesi, Giuseppe (ed.), International Cooperation in Counter-Terrorism (Aldershot, 2006).

Eric, Rosand, ‘Security Council Resolution 1373, the Counter-Terrorism Committee, and the Fight Against Terrorism’ (2003) 97 American Journal of International Law333.Google Scholar

Robert, Rosenstock, ‘International Convention against the Taking of Hostages: Another International Community Step against Terrorism’ (1980) 9 Denver Journal of International Law and Policy169.Google Scholar

Nicolas, Rostov, ‘Before and After: The Changed UN Response to Terrorism Since September 11th’ (2002) 35 Cornell International Law Journal475.Google Scholar

Ben, Saul, Defining Terrorism in International Law (Oxford, 2006).Google Scholar

Sami, Shubber, ‘The International Convention Against the Taking of Hostages’ (1981) 52 BYIL205.Google Scholar

Subedi, Surya P., ‘The UN Response to International Terrorism in the Aftermath of the Terrorist Attacks in America and the Problem of the Definition of Terrorism in International Law’ (2002) 4 International Law FORUM du droit international159.CrossRef Google Scholar

Walter, Christian et al. (eds.), Terrorism as a Challenge for National and International Law: Security versus Liberty? (Berlin, 2004).CrossRef

Witten, Samuel M., ‘The International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings’ (1998) 92 American Journal of International Law774.CrossRef Google Scholar

Michael, Wood, ‘The Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes against Internationally Protected Persons, including Diplomatic Agents’ (1974) 23 International and Comparative Law Quarterly791.Google Scholar

Ahcene, Boulesbaa, The UN Convention on Torture and the Prospects for Enforcement (The Hague, 1999).Google Scholar

Burgers, J. Herman and Danelius, Hans, The United Nations Convention against Torture: A Handbook on the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (Leiden, 1988).Google Scholar

Nigel, Rodley, The Treatment of Prisoners under International Law, 3rd edn (Oxford, 2009).Google Scholar

Rodley, Nigel and Pollard, Matt, ‘Criminalisation of Torture: State Obligations under the United Nations Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment or Punishment’ (2006) 2 European Human Rights Law Review115.Google Scholar

Lene, Wendland, A Handbook on State Obligations under the UN Convention against Torture (Geneva, 2002).Google Scholar

Neil, Boister, ‘Transnational Criminal Law?’ (2003) 14 European Journal of International Law 953 at 967–77Google Scholar

Nadelmann, A., ‘Global prohibition regimes: the evolution of norms in international society’ (1990) 44 International Organisation 479 at 481CrossRef Google Scholar

Roger, Clark, ‘Offences of International Concern: Multilateral Treaty Practice in the Forty Years since Nuremberg’ (1988) 57 Nordic Journal of International Law 49 at 58Google Scholar

Neil, Boister, ‘Human Rights Protections in the Suppression Conventions’ (2002) 2 Human Rights Law Review199Google Scholar

Myra, Williamson, The Legality of the Use of Force Against Afghanistan in 2001 (Ashgate, 2009)Google Scholar

Christine, Gray, International Law and the Use of Force, 3rd edn (Oxford, 2008) ch. 6Google Scholar

Juttee, Brunee and Stephen, Toope, ‘The Use of Force after Iraq’ (2004) 53 International and Comparative Law Quarterly785Google Scholar

Gilbert, Guillaume, ‘Terrorism and International Law’ (2004) 53 International and Comparative Law Quarterly537Google Scholar

Sean, Murphy, ‘Terrorism and the Concept of “Armed Attack” in Article 51 of the U.N. Charter’ (2002) 43 Harvard International Law Journal41Google Scholar

Grant, John P., ‘Beyond the Montreal Convention’ (2004) 36 Case Western Reserve Journal of International Law 453 at 472Google Scholar

‘The Multifaceted Criminal Notion of Terrorism in International Law’ (2006) 4 Journal of International Criminal Justice1

Ben, Saul, ‘The Legal Response of the League of Nations to Terrorism’ (2006) 4 Journal of International Criminal Justice78Google Scholar

Bassiouni, M. Cherif (ed.), International Criminal Law, 2nd edn (New York, 1999), vol. I, 837

Tal, Becker, Terrorism and the State (Oxford, 2006) 84–118Google Scholar

Michael, Plachta, ‘The Lockerbie Case: The Role of the Security Council in Enforcing the Principle Aut Dedere Aut Judicare’ (2001) 12 European Journal of International Law125Google Scholar

Matthew, Happold, ‘Security Council Resolution 1373 and the Constitution of the United Nations’ (2003) 16 Leiden Journal of International Law593Google Scholar

Paul, Szasz, ‘The Security Council Starts Legislating’ (2002) 96 American Journal of International Law901Google Scholar

Stefan, Talmon, ‘The Security Council as World Legislature’ (2005) 99 American Journal of International Law175Google Scholar

Levitt, G., ‘Is “Terrorism” worth defining?’ (1986) 13 Ohio Northern University Law Review97Google Scholar

John, Murphy, ‘Defining International Terrorism: a Way out of the Quagmire’ (1989) 19 Israel Yearbook on Human Rights13Google Scholar

Reuven, Young, ‘Defining Terrorism: The Evolution of Terrorism as a Legal Concept in International Law and its Influence on Definitions in Domestic Legislation’ (2006) 29 Boston College International and Comparative Law Review23Google Scholar

Jan, Klabbers, ‘Rebel with a Cause? Terrorists and Humanitarian Law’ (2003) 14 European Journal of International Law299Google Scholar

Oscar, Schachter, ‘The Lawful Use of Force by a State against Terrorists in another Country’ (1989) 19 Israel Yearbook on Human Rights 209 at 210.Google Scholar

Ben, Golder and Williams, George, ‘Balancing National Security and Human Rights: Assessing the Legal Response of Common Law Nations to the Threat of Terrorism’ (2006) 8 Journal of Comparative Policy Analysis43Google Scholar

Lucia, Aleni, ‘Distinguishing Terrorism from Wars of National Liberation in the Light of International Law’ (2008) 6 Journal of International Criminal Justice525Google Scholar

Robert, Cryer, ‘Prosecutor v. Galić and the War Crime of Terror Bombing’ (2005–2006) 2 Israel Defence Force Law Review73Google Scholar

Antonio, Cassese, ‘Terrorism Is Also Disrupting Some Crucial Legal Categories of International Law’ (2001) 12 European Journal of International Law 993 at 994Google Scholar

Antonio Frédéric, Mégret, ‘Justice in Times of Violence’ (2003) 14 European Journal of International Law 327 at 332–4Google Scholar

William, Schabas, ‘Is Terrorism a Crime against Humanity?’ (2002) 8 International Peacekeeping: The Yearbook of International Peace Operations255Google Scholar

Dershowitz, Alan M., Why Terrorism Works: Understanding the Threat, Responding to the Challenge (New Haven, CT, 2002)Google Scholar

Paola, Gaeta, ‘May necessity be available as a defence against torture in the interrogation of suspected terrorists?’ (2004) 2 Journal of International Criminal Justice762Google Scholar

Joshua, Dretel, The Torture Papers: The Road to Abu Ghraib (Cambridge, 2005)Google Scholar

O'Connell, Mary Ellen, ‘Affirming the Ban on Harsh Interrogation’ (2005) 66 Ohio State Law Journal1231Google Scholar

Seth, Kreimer, ‘“Torture Lite,” “Full bodied” Torture, and the Insulation of Legal Conscience’ (2005) 1 Journal of National Security Law and Policy187Google Scholar

Rodley, N., The Treatment of Prisoners under International Law, 2nd edn (Oxford, 1999)Google Scholar

Nigel, Rodley, ‘The Definition(s) of Torture in International Law’ (2002) 55 Current Legal Problems467 at 476–7Google Scholar

Sandesh, Sivakumaran, ‘Torture in International Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law: The Actor and the Ad Hoc Tribunals’ (2005) 18 Leiden Journal of International Law541Google Scholar

Accessibility standard: Unknown

Why this information is here

This section outlines the accessibility features of this content - including support for screen readers, full keyboard navigation and high-contrast display options. This may not be relevant for you.

Accessibility Information

Accessibility compliance for the PDF of this chapter is currently unknown and may be updated in the future.