The International Humanitarian Law includes a series of regulations which are beyond all question great achievements. It bans biological and chemical weapons, landmines and attacks on civilians, protects war victims and much more.
Nevertheless, there is also a downside to the International Humanitarian Law, as Elvira Rosert states in her HSFK-Standpunkt No. 7/2010 Die Illusion des humanen Krieges. Verdienste und Kehrseiten des Humanitären Völkerrechts. Doesn´t it encourage the illusion of a “clean” war to silence the conscience of the civilised world? In her Standpunkt, the author reveals the dilemmas of the International Humanitarian Law without diminishing its merits and uncovers some inconvenient truths.