Legitimate use of military force against state-sponsored - Air University

is applied to an activity or conduct does not mean that the law approves of that conduct. When
domestic criminal law addresses the murderer it does not, thereby, approve murder. The law of
armed conflict addresses terrorist acts as either war crimes or grave breaches of the Geneva
conventions and, instead of approving of terrorism, condemns those acts. Rather than bestowing
status or recognition on international terrorists and their state sponsors or supporters, the law of
armed conflict identifies participation in such acts as universal crimes that bring no honor. In the
words of Dr Sloan, “It must be stressed however that recognizing that terrorism may be more
than a criminal act does not mean to imply that the perpetrator has some degree of legitimacy for
his or her actions.” 20
Imprecise Dividing Line between Peace and War
Fourth, and finally, inadequate research, denial, and misconceptions have contributed to a
belief that treating terrorists as criminals requires a law enforcement approach. We do not
understand what it truly means to treat terrorism as a form of warfare. “Many, for example,”
notes Harry Summers, a recognized writer on military strategy, “give lip-service to the idea that
terrorism is a form of warfare, but few understand what that admission entails.” 21 National
leaders see the problem for the most part not as a lack of understanding but as a condition of the
existing political scene. Former secretary of defense Caspar Weinberger notes, for example, “In
today’s world, the line between peace and war is less clearly drawn than at any time in our
history.” 22 Secretary Shultz discusses why this situation exists:
Among the factors contributing to this lack of understanding are our
perceptions that the nation and the world are either at war or at peace, with the
latter being the normal state; and the existence of a well-resourced campaign by
our adversaries to create and support misunderstanding of the means and ends of
this confrontation. 23
A realization of a lack of understanding can be healthy. It can lead to research, to rejection of
denial, and to dispelling misconceptions. Understanding can be improved but where are the
inquiring initiatives?
Managing International Terrorism
In rethinking the issue of how to approach terrorism, we must focus on managing
international terrorism. Domestic terrorism—that is, terrorism that occurs within the borders of a
particular state and has no international implications—is criminal activity within the domestic
criminal law jurisdiction of that country. The only applicable approach to domestic terrorism is
the law enforcement approach.
International law governs relations between states and, generally speaking, is not
concerned with matters within a state’s domestic jurisdiction. Whether the law of armed conflict,
as part of international law, should apply to international terrorism, as defined in chapter 1, is
open for consideration.