We’ve experienced another week when issues of international law come to the fore in the media and the public sphere, also known as people shouting at each other on X (formerly Twitter). 

Meanwhile, Israel has been bombing Lebanon. There are hundreds of casualties and hundreds of thousands of people have fled. It mirrors previous events in north Israel, when thousands fled as Hezbollah rockets came down and sheltered while Hamas attacked via rockets from the south.

So (- that seems to be Janet’s favourite word right now – so,) what are the limits of IHL when it comes to the pager and walkie-talkie explosives in Lebanon? A brilliant example of Israeli prowess, devastating Hezbollah’s communications, or an illegal mass casualty attack, affecting children, medics and the Iranian ambassador? 

Marco Sassoli is an Emeritus Professor at the University of Geneva and he provided a full dress analysis to show how IHL lawyers would approach this attack.

Also, we cover the International Court of Justice Advisory Opinion ruling on Israel’s occupation of Palestine, which has been voted on by the United Nations General Assembly. So what happens now that the states have adopted a tough resolution? We hear from Nada Kiswanson about the current implications.

For more background, listen back to the pod we did together with Molly Quell on a tram, explaining what the AO actually said. For deeper insights like what exactly is an AO, check out this past podcast. And for an assessment of how important this advisory opinion is, in terms of how the world sees the uneven application of international law, check this piece by Binaifer Nowrojee.

And we also examine Israel’s public response to the threat of ICC arrest warrants against their leaders (finally) – Adil Haque provides his interpretation. But, Stephanie refuses to speculate (too much) on what the ICC judges might actually do and when.

It’s all go around here…