Saqib Jawad

The Right to Life Protected Persons during Armed Conflict Saqib Jawad

Discussion on the rights of human beings can be traced back to the beginning of humanity itself. Not only a human being possesses certain rights with his birth, rather unborn also possesses some rights, which are universally recognized in today's world in one way or the other. All the rights of human beings hold importance in their respective spheres, but unquestioningly, the right to life is the most important, because, without the existence of the right to life, the existence of all other rights becomes redundant. However, in various areas, importance and protection of the right to life have been ignored for one reason or the other. Same treatment has been done with this right when the question of its protection is raised during armed conflicts. Though conflicts are always deadly, they are also subject to certain rules. 'The law of armed conflict' also known as 'international humanitarian law'(IHL) is the applicable law during armed conflict, but 'human rights law' (HRL) is also equally applicable during such a situation. However, it has been noticed that IHL and HRL contain different criteria in respect of protection of the right to life during armed conflict. Generally speaking, IHL contains a bit liberal approach, while on the other hand, HRL contains a bit strict approach in respect of protection of the right to life. However, both branches of international law have their own importance, depending upon the prevailing situation and nature of the armed conflict. This book intends to highlight these gaps and suggest suitable measures for better protection of this core human right, the right to life.