CHALLENGES TO INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN AND HUMAN RIGHTS LAW IN ASYMMETRIC ARMED CONFLICT IN AFRICA

Abstract

Most armed conflicts in Africa are non-international armed conflicts (NIACs) involving the armed forces of States against armed groups. In most cases, the military strength of State armed forces supersedes that of opposition armed groups, who will naturally adopt unconventional strategies in the conduct of armed conflict in order to gain an advantage against a superior military adversary. This paper adopts the doctrinal methodology and argues that the adoption of unconventional methods of warfare has wide implications for the application of the rules of international humanitarian law to most conflicts in Africa.