EJIL: Talk!
- The ICJ Advisory Opinion on Climate Change: What It Means for the Convention on Biological Diversity 22/05/2026This week’s General Assembly’s resolution welcoming the International Court of Justice’s Advisory Opinion on Obligations of States in Respect of Climate Change provides significant guidance. It calls upon all States to ‘comply with their respective obligations under international law to ensure the protection of the climate system and other parts of the environment from anthropogenic […]Margaret Young
- From Opinion to Action: The General Assembly Votes to Operationalize the ICJ’s Climate Advisory Opinion 22/05/2026On 20 May 2026, the United Nations General Assembly adopted resolution A/80/L.65 welcoming the Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the Obligations of States in Respect of Climate Change. The draft, tabled by Vanuatu and a cross-regional Core Group attracted 90 co-sponsors and was adopted by a recorded vote of 141 […]Margaretha Wewerinke-Singh
- From Option to Methodology: The ILC’s Missed Opportunity on Judicial Precedent 21/05/2026The International Law Commission (ILC), during its seventy-sixth session in May 2025, provisionally adopted the first-reading draft conclusions on Subsidiary means for the determination of rules of international law. Among these, Draft Conclusion 6 [7] addresses the use of judicial decisions, provisionally stating: Draft conclusion 6 [7] Absence of legally binding precedent in international law Decisions […]Mehmet Emin Büyük
- Sovereign Darkness: Iran’s Internet Blackout and the Four-Body Problem of International Law 20/05/2026By 21 April 2026, Iran’s internet blackout had entered its fifty-third consecutive day, the longest nationwide internet disruption ever recorded (NetBlocks; IODA Iran shutdown report). Connectivity remained at approximately one per cent of pre-war levels. The shutdown was costing the economy an estimated $35–40 million per day in direct losses, rising to $70–80 million when […]Klaudia Szabelka
- China’s Zero-Tariff Policy for Africa: Stretching the Enabling Clause? 18/05/2026On 1st May 2026, China implemented a zero-tariff policy covering all 53 African countries with which it maintains diplomatic relations, requiring no reciprocity. The measure builds on an earlier step: since 1 December 2024, China has eliminated tariffs on 100% of tariff lines for 33 least developed countries (LDCs) in Africa on the same diplomatic-recognition […]Beichen Ding
- Announcements: CfP Journal of International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict; CfP European Yearbook of Constitutional Law 17/05/20261. Call for Papers: Journal of International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict. The Journal of International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict (JILPAC / HuV) invites submissions for its second issue of 2026 on the “Enforcement of International Humanitarian Law Beyond the Battlefield”. The issue seeks to explore sanctions as tools of IHL enforcement, frozen and […]Mary Guest
- Two Weeks in Review: 4—15 May 2026 17/05/2026The last two weeks have seen commentators range across a number of topics and jurisdictions. The US-Israeli war in Iran has remained in focus, with the use of US bases abroad raising questions of neutrality and the interdiction of Iranian oil tankers novel question of the laws of the sea and naval warfare. The European […]Sebastian von Massow
- Use of third-state air bases by the United States in the conflict with Iran 15/05/2026The United States has used air bases located in third states in the armed conflict with Iran that began on 28 February 2026. Yet, the action of the United States in Iran may be qualified as aggression, given that neither the conditions of self-defense nor an authorization by the Security Council appear to be satisfied. […]Benjamin Meret
- The ECtHR’s First Victimisation Judgment… 50 years after the 1975 Equal Pay Directive 14/05/2026In December 2025, in Ortega Ortega v. Spain, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), for the first time, found that unremedied employer retaliation against a sex discrimination complainant amounted to sex discrimination. The domestic courts upheld a woman’s dismissal after she complained about unequal pay. The ECtHR found a violation of Article 14 with Article 8 […]Margarita S. Ilieva
- The Twice-Coerced Zambia and the Synergy Between Human Rights Violations and Prohibited Intervention 13/05/2026Last week, like many other scholars and activists, I was due to participate in RightsCon, the leading conference on human rights in the digital age. This year it was supposed to take place in Zambia, with thousands of participants. The conference is organised by Access Now. They had for many months directly cooperated with the […]Marko Milanovic