Fighting Abroad: The Foreign Fighters Phenomenon in the Scope of International Law, the 'Blowback Effect' and National Counter-Terrorism Measures

Abstract

The main scope of this paper is the analysis of the fighters phenomenon from an international legal point of view. Who is a foreign fighter? How can we define him/her under IHL? Is a foreign fighter a terrorist? What is the so called blowback effect and how can we contrast it through national and international regulation, in particular under an European perspective?