Targeting the Head of State during the Gulf Conflict: A Legal Analysis

Abstract

This paper will address the question of whether it would be an illegal assassination for U.S. Armed Forces to kill the leader of an enemy state during a period of armed conflict, if the United States had specifically identified the leader as a target beforehand. A review of the relevant provisions of Executive Order 12333, the Hague Conventions, the Geneva Conventions, and the United Nations Charter indicate that, during a period of armed conflict, the United States may lawfully conduct a deliberate attack on a foreign leader who also is invaluable to the enemy's armed forces. The author concludes that, with the approval of the National Command Authorities, General Norman Schwarzkopf, Commander-in-Chief of the United States Central Command, could have specifically identified Saddam Hussein as a target during the Gulf Conflict, and that the killing of the Iraqi leader by U.S. Armed Forces would not have been illegal or an assassination.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 18, 1992
Accession Number
ADA253099

Entities

People

  • Alvin W. Keller Jr.

Organizations

  • Naval War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Human Systems
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Assassination
  • Crime
  • Employment
  • Governments
  • International Law
  • International Relations
  • Law
  • Military Law
  • National Security
  • Personnel Management
  • Prisoners
  • Prisoners Of War
  • Terrorism
  • Terrorists
  • United States
  • United States Central Command
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Criminal Law
  • Government and Public Administration Law.
  • Military History / Militaries and War Studies