Violence and Restraint in Civil War

Civilian Targeting in the Shadow of International Law

Bibliographic Data

ID19948797
AuthorsJessica A Stanton (0000-0002-8019-804X, California University of Pennsylvania, corresponding author)
Year2016
Publication date2016-09-26
Open AccessYes
TypeBOOK
VenueViolence and Restraint in Civil War (SOURCE_BOOK)
PublisherCambridge University Press (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1017/9781107706477
OpenAlexW2735275708
Open LibraryOL34560745M
ISBN9781107706477
LanguageEN
Citations received120
References cited168

Media coverage of civil wars often focuses on the most gruesome atrocities and the most extreme conflicts, which might lead one to think that all civil wars involve massive violence against civilians. In truth, many governments and rebel groups exercise restraint in their fighting, largely avoiding violence against civilians in compliance with international law. Governments and rebel groups make strategic calculations about whether to target civilians by evaluating how domestic and international audiences are likely to respond to violence. Restraint is also a deliberate strategic choice: governments and rebel groups often avoid targeting civilians and abide by international legal standards to appeal to domestic and international audiences for diplomatic support. This book presents a wide range of evidence of the strategic use of violence and restraint, using original data on violence against civilians in civil wars from 1989 to 2010 as well as in-depth analyses of conflicts in Azerbaijan, El Salvador, Indonesia, Sudan, Turkey, and Uganda

Appeal · Criminology · International law · Political science · Sociology · Spanish Civil War · Global Peace and Security Dynamics · Law · Political Conflict and Governance · Psychology · Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and Political Violence · Civil War

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