Nato in Kosovo: operation allied force viewed from the core principles of jus in bello

Abstract

This paper reviews NATO’s Operation Allied Force conducted in Kosovo in 1999 based on the principles of International Humanitarian Law, namely those of distinction, proportionality, precaution and limitations on the type of weapons to be used within military operations. This document is distributed in two main parts. The first one describes NATO’s constitutive treaty by making emphasis in what are considered its most prominent articles followed by a presentation of the four principles of jus in bello, mentioned previously. The second part deals with the description of four air incidents within the Operation aiming at the violation of International Humanitarian Law along with scholars opinions regarding the subject matter of discussion as well as the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) final decision not to initiate investigations. This paper is the result of research made through different International Law Journals and news from NATO’s official webpage. Finally, it is worth mentioning that it is not pretended to criticize neither the arguments presented by scholars opposing NATO’s intervention nor the decision at which the ICTY arrived, the aim is to present a case which still has not had consensus among International Law analysts but that can help in understanding jus in bello in International Relations.