The hostages still held captive and their families in anguish.1 In this and every conflict, international humanitarian law (IHL) is the most complete and practical tool at our disposal to ensure the protection of civilians and to pave the way for de-escalation. [...] They impose obligations to subject the transfer of conventional arms, ammunition and parts and components within the ATT’s scope to strict requirements with the aim of ensuring that these arms and items do not end up in the hands of those who would use them to commit serious violations of IHL or international human rights law, or other serious crimes. [...] One of the most significant aspects of the treaty is its absolute prohibition of arms transfers under Article 6(3) whose aim is to prevent the commission of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. [...] To effectively prevent serious violations of IHL, the ICRC has recommended that the State Party carefully consider the recipient’s past and present record of respect for IHL, among other indicators.4 Draft chapter 3 of the Voluntary Guide points to the need to exercise “[s]pecial caution […] when there is a conflict situation in the recipient country”. [...] As discussed yesterday morning, draft chapter 3 of the Voluntary Guide recommends in this regard that “[a recipient’s commitments] should […] be confirmed by actual State practice in order for the exporting State Party to consider such commitments as risk mitigation.” The Voluntary Guide also recalls the importance of monitoring the impact of the measures and processes in question and look at tang.
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