The cases of Al-Skeini and Al-Jedda

Daniel Carey Daniel Carey,Phil Shiner Phil Shiner

doi:10.13169/socialistlawyer.59.0022

Abstract

by Daniel Carey and Phil Shiner On 7th July 2011 the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) handed down judgments in the cases of AlSkeini and Al-Jedda, over seven and six years respectively since they were issued at the High Court in London. It was worth the wait. Together, the near-unanimous judgments represent a fundamental and irreversible exertion of human rights protections in wartime. In Iraq, it was a war that cost the lives and well-being of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis, and the lives of 179 British soldiers. The cases of AlSkeini and Al-Jedda

Highlights

The Search for Accountability Baha Mousa’s father was one of the six claimants in AlSkeini
The Accountability Vacuum The conduct of military hostilities and occupation was regulated by international treaties long before modern human rights conventions
Article 31 of Geneva Convention IV goes even further in an interrogation context, prohibiting even ‘physical and moral coercion’. It arguably goes beyond even the protections afforded by of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR)

Summary

Introduction

The Search for Accountability Baha Mousa’s father was one of the six claimants in AlSkeini. The Accountability Vacuum The conduct of military hostilities and occupation was regulated by international treaties long before modern human rights conventions.

Results

Conclusion