Investigating the accountability of Transnational Armed Groups under International Law for armed attacks

Abstract

According to the National Counterterrorism Centre in the United States, there were approximately 11,000 attacks carried out by Transnational Armed Groups worldwide in 2009. A Transnational Armed Group can be described as a non-state armed actor which operates beyond the territorial borders of a single state and carries out serious and violent acts intended to cause fear, death, serious bodily injury and property damage to a person, group or general population in order to force a government or international organisation to perform or refrain from performing a particular act. An example of a Transnational Armed Group is Al-Qaeda. According to the Program on Humanitarian Policy and Conflict Research (HPCR) at Harvard University, other examples of Transnational Armed Groups include Jemaah Islamiyah and the Palestine Liberation Organisation. However, these particular Transnational Armed Groups are more limited in geographical scope and vary in organisation and objectives. According to HPCR, Al Qaeda is ...