International Law and Human Rights
International Law and Human Rights tests sources, statehood, jurisdiction and the interaction of treaty, customary and domestic law. Palestine is party to core human rights treaties and is bound by international humanitarian law in armed conflict. The exam expects you to separate IHRL from IHL and to identify the forum.
Core rules
- Sources: treaties, custom, general principles, judicial decisions and writings.
- A treaty binds Palestine once ratified and published; domestic effect depends on incorporation.
- IHRL applies at all times, including emergencies, with limited derogations.
- IHL applies in armed conflict and governs occupation, protected persons and conduct of hostilities.
- Jurisdiction may be territorial, personal or universal.
Worked example
A detainee is held without charge beyond the legal limit and without access to counsel. The adviser frames the issue under the Basic Law, the ICCPR fair-trial guarantees and, if the detention is in an armed conflict, IHL. The remedy may be release, compensation or a habeas-type challenge. The reasoning must name the applicable regime; simply saying human rights were violated is insufficient.
Traps
Mixing IHL and IHRL; assuming every ratified treaty is directly enforceable; ignoring reservations; confusing state responsibility with individual criminal liability.