Foreign Fighters under International Law and Beyond

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xxiii

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2. Introduction

   • Andrea de Guttry, Francesca Capone, Christophe Paulussen

   Pages 1-5

3. Foreign Fighters: A Multidisciplinary Overview of New Challenges for an Old Phenomenon

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 7-7

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   2. Foreign Fighters in the Syria and Iraq Conflict: Statistics and Characteristics of a Rapidly Growing Phenomenon

      • Edwin Bakker, Mark Singleton

      Pages 9-25

   3. Foreign Fighters Involvement in National and International Wars: A Historical Survey

      • Marcello Flores

      Pages 27-47

   4. Foreign Fighters as a Challenge for International Relations Theory

      • Francesco Strazzari

      Pages 49-62

   5. Foreign Fighters: Motivations for Travel to Foreign Conflicts

      • Ross Frenett, Tanya Silverman

      Pages 63-76

   6. The Emerging Role of Social Media in the Recruitment of Foreign Fighters

      • Gabriel Weimann

      Pages 77-95

   7. Analysing the Recruitment and Use of Foreign Men and Women in ISIL through a Gender Perspective

      • Dallin Van Leuven, Dyan Mazurana, Rachel Gordon

      Pages 97-120

   8. The Military Impact of Foreign Fighters on the Battlefield: The Case of the ISIL

      • Fabrizio Coticchia

      Pages 121-138

4. The Legal Dimension: The Status of the Foreign Fighters

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 139-139

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   2. The Status of Foreign Fighters under International Humanitarian Law

      • Emanuele Sommario

      Pages 141-160

   3. Foreign Fighters and International Criminal Law

      • Robert Heinsch

      Pages 161-185

   4. Child Soldiers: The Expanding Practice of Minors Recruited to Become Foreign Fighters

      • Francesca Capone

      Pages 187-204

   5. Armed Opposition Groups’ (and Foreign Fighters’) Abidance by International Human Rights Law: The Issue of Compliance in Syria and Iraq

      • Daniele Amoroso

      Pages 205-226

5. Tackling the Phenomenon of Foreign Fighters at the Supranational Level

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 227-227

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   2. The Obligations under International Law of the Foreign Fighter’s State of Nationality or Habitual Residence, State of Transit and State of Destination

      • Sandra Krähenmann

      Pages 229-258

   3. The Role Played by the UN in Countering the Phenomenon of Foreign Terrorist Fighters

      • Andrea de Guttry

      Pages 259-282

   4. States’ Prevention and Responses to the Phenomenon of Foreign Fighters against the Backdrop of International Human Rights Obligations

      • Alex Conte

      Pages 283-298

   5. The Regional Answers and Governance Structure for Dealing with Foreign Fighters: The Case of the EU

      • Gilles de Kerchove, Christiane Höhn

      Pages 299-331

This book offers various perspectives, with an international legal focus, on an important and underexplored topic, which has recently gained momentum: the issue of foreign fighters. It provides an overview of challenges, pays considerable attention to the status of foreign fighters, and addresses numerous approaches, both at the supranational and national level, on how to tackle this problem. Outstanding experts in the field – lawyers, historians and political scientists – contributed to the present volume, providing the reader with a multitude of views concerning this multifaceted phenomenon. Particular attention is paid to its implications in light of the armed conflicts currently taking place in Syria and Iraq. 

Andrea de Guttry is a Full Professor of International Law at the Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, Pisa, Italy. Francesca Capone is a Research Fellow in Public International Law at the Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna. Christophe Paulussen is a Senior Researcher at the T.M.C. Asser Instituut in The Hague, the Netherlands, and a Research Fellow at the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism – The Hague.

• Foreign Fighters
• International Law
• Armed Opposition Groups
• ISIS
• Counter-terrorism

“The book is able to live up to its promise of providing an in-depth study of such a complex and evolving topic. … Overall, the book represents a valuable tool which answers some of the most pressing issues and to foster further debate and research on a topic that, as the editors mention, is expected to remain prominent on the political agenda for many years.” (Denise Venturi and Silvia Venier, International & Comparative Law Quarterly, November, 2016)

• DIRPOLIS, Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, Pisa, Italy

  Andrea de Guttry, Francesca Capone

• T.M.C. Asser Instituut, The Hague, The Netherlands

  Christophe Paulussen

Andrea De Guttry, Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, Pisa, Italy
Francesca Capone, Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, Pisa, Italy
Christophe Paulussen, T.M.C. Asser Instituut, The Hague, The Netherlands

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