• SUNDAY JOHN APOCHI

The principle of proportionality in International Humanitarian Law (IHL), prohibits attacks which may be expected to cause incidental loss of civilian life, injury to civilians, damage to civilian objects, or a combination thereof, which would be excessive in relation to the concrete and direct military advantage anticipated during the conduct of hostilities. Given that direct attacks against civilians and civilian objects are already prohibited, the proportionality evaluation is relevant only when attacks are directed against lawful targets. The key term to be examined in the proportionality equation is excessive. While the requirement of proportionality is absolute, the standard of excessiveness is relative. IHL does not establish an objective threshold above which the infliction of incidental harm would always be excessive. In principle, targets with a comparatively high military value will justify greater incidental harm than targets with a comparatively low military value. Thus, the infliction of incidental harm on protected persons or objects can only be justified by advantages of a military nature, and not by political, economic or other consideration. More so, the anticipated military advantage must be “concrete” and “direct” and not of a merely hypothetical, speculative or indirect nature. This paper examines the principle of proportionality in modern warfare and explores the applicability of IHL rules in the concurrent emerging issues which constitutes a bottleneck to the law of war. The paper argues that the notion of ‘just cause’, ‘reasonableness’, and ‘excessiveness’ and the requirement of last resort are all within the proportionality principle of IHL. This paper concludes that with the introduction of modern technologies in to the present modern warfare, the damages cause by these technologies have a direct or reverberating consequences on these conflicts by considering the costs casualties, against their military objectives.

Belligerent, Civilians, International Humanitarian Law, Military, War.

"EXAMINING THE PRACTICABILITY OF THE PRINCIPLE PROPORTIONALITY IN A MODERN WARFARE", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.7, Issue 12, page no.961-972, December-2020, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2012126.pdf

"EXAMINING THE PRACTICABILITY OF THE PRINCIPLE PROPORTIONALITY IN A MODERN WARFARE", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.7, Issue 12, page no. pp961-972, December-2020, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2012126.pdf