Mohamed Thahir Sulaiman explores how the Global South has challenged mainstream notions of what it means for a state to be specially affected when it comes to customary international law formation. Sulaiman argues that the doctrine of specially affected states can be used to counteract hegemonic international law and amplify the voices of the Global South in shaping customary international law.
international law
Sarah Riley Case talks with Usha Natarajan about the foundational link between racism and ecological harm and how to repair relations between peoples and planet. They discuss Sarah’s research on recovering third world ecologies, making reparations, and reconceptualizing the human, and conclude by considering the crucial situation in Palestine.
What is the role of the (legal) intellectual in social transformation today, amid escalating environmental and economic injustice, and the rise of racist regimes worldwide? How should the tactics of third world anti-imperialists evolve amid the disintegration of US power and the mass suffering inflicted by the death throes of US imperialist and capitalist hegemony? While international laws and institutions have contributed to structuring and reproducing suffering across the global south, what role (if any) can law play towards structuring a world order for peace and ecological stability based on respectful interrelations? Vijay Prashad discussed these issues and more with Usha Natarajan and John Reynolds online on 23 April 2025.
A roundtable discussion involving Sumedha Choudhury, Julia Dehm, André Dao, Haris Jamil, Richard Joyce, Adil Hasan Khan, Tanvee Nandan, Dianne Otto and Saika Sabir, expressing their indebtedness to the Palestinian scholars they had read together.
Jasmin Lilian Diab delves into the deceptive use of the term ‘evacuation’ in modern warfare, where it often masks forced displacement and population expulsion. Highlighting the Israeli-Hezbollah conflict as a prime example, the author argues that this language manipulation not only distorts the truth but also shields perpetrators from accountability for war crimes and human rights abuses.
Issue 5 is out now, including articles on Bob Marley, the neoliberal transformation of the Indian state, teaching international economic law in Africa, children of African Irish descent, settler colonial logics in Nigeria, transnational labour mobility + 2 key TWAIL texts now in Spanish.
Scholars and practitioners of international law, international relations, conflict studies, politics and genocide studies call for the Israeli state to be unseated from the UN General Assembly.
Kalika Mehta explores the limitations of international law in addressing corporate atrocities. The author argues for a strategic approach to international criminal law that challenges systemic biases and promotes justice for marginalized communities.
Sumedha Choudhury delves into the nuanced history of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and its impact on minority rights. The author argues how minority oppression is not an aberration but rather a by-product of international law.
Jeena Shah explores the global efforts to hold President Biden accountable for complicity in genocide. As one of the drafters of the amicus brief supported by a score of international organizations, the author underscores the case’s significance, drawing parallels with South Africa’s actions at the International Court of Justice. The author highlights the transformative potential of these legal actions, challenging the prevailing political climate and advocating for public awareness to end ongoing atrocities.