The Law of Targeting

• Detailed, practical, and accessible, this is the definitive work on the controversial topic of targeting in warfare
• Highly contemporary account analysing new attack methods, including drone attacks and the complex issues surrounding cyber warfare
• With both a doctrinal and practical perspective, this book will be invaluable to government and army legal advisers as well as to scholars and students in the area

Readership: Academics and students of the laws of armed conflict; practitioners, government and military officals, and NGOs dealing with issues in warfare

William H. Boothby, Former Deputy Director of Legal Services, Royal Air Force

Bill Boothby recently retired as Deputy Director of Legal Services for the Royal Air Force. He served in Germany, Cyprus, Hong Kong, Croatia and in a variety of locations in the United Kingdom. In 2009 he was awarded a Doktor der Rechte degree in international law at the University of Frankfurt (Oder) in Germany and published his associated doctoral thesis with OUP under the title Weapons and the Law of Armed Conflict. He is on the Editorial Board of the UK Manual of the Law of Armed Conflict, and contributed as one of the group of experts to the Harvard Manual on the International Law of Air and Missile Warfare. He is currently engaged as a member of the core group of international law experts preparing a Manual on the International Law of Cyber Warfare. Following retirement from the RAF, he plans to teach international law at a number of Universities and to continue to write and speak on the subject.

Section I: The Law of Targeting in Context
1: Introduction
2: Historical Evolution of the Law
3: Sources of the Law
4: Spectrum of Conflict
Section II: General Principles in the Law of Targeting
5: Fundamental Customary Principles and Customary Rules
6: The AP1 Rule of Distinction
7: The AP I Requirement to take Precautions in Attack
8: The Controversy Over the Notion of Direct Participation in Hostilities
9: The Controversy over Bombardment - What is the Required Degree of Care?
Section III: Particular Protections
10: The Protection of the Environment
11: Cultural Property
12: Objects Entitled to Special Protection
Section IV: Weapons and Technologies
13: Weapons Law
14: Targeting Using Particular Technologies
Section V: Specific Media
15: Naval Warfare
16: Air Warfare
17: Space Warfare
18: Cyber Warfare
Section VI: Practical Aspects of Contemporary Targeting
19: The Prosecution of Difficult Targets
20: Types of Warfare
Section VI: Implementing the Law of Targeting
21: How States Implement the Distinction Principle
22: When Things go Wrong
Section VII Conclusion
23: The changing nature of conflict and the law of targeting