STATE RESPONSIBILITY FOR ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE DURING INTERNATIONAL ARMED CONFLICT POST THE UNCC

Abstract

The 1991 Gulf War heralded many developments in international law, and particularly in the fields of humanitarian law and environmental law in regards state’s liable for paying compensation for environmental damage resulting from their conduct during armed conflict. Despite this positive development, the environment has still been the victim of subsequent international armed conflicts such as the 1999 Kosovo conflict, 2003 Iraq war and 2006 Israel-Lebanon war. No belligerent was deemed liable for environmental damage as a result of unlawful actions under international law in these international hostilities. As a consequence, perpetrators of wartime environmental crimes went unpunished. Therefore, this article attempts to analyse factors that may contribute to the ineffective implementation of state responsibility for environmental damage during international warfare following the 1991 Gulf War, and suggests some steps that may be taken to improve the enforcement of state responsibility for environmental damage during inter-states armed conflict.