Jus ad bellum and jus in bello: what's the difference? | The Laws of War | ICRC
Channel: International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
Date: 2021-08-12

Jus ad bellum and jus in bello refer to different branches of law. 

Jus ad bellum is the international law for regulating the resort to force and determines whether the use of force is legal. The general rule is that parties are only allowed to use force if in self-defense or if authorized by the UN Security Council.
 
Jus in bello is another term for International Humanitarian Law (IHL). IHL does not rule on whether a conflict is legal or not. Instead it sets clear rules for once an armed conflict has started - rules that are laid down in the 1949 Geneva Conventions. You can watch a video on the Geneva Conventions here: What are the Geneva Conventions?
 
00:00
00:13 Jus ad bellum – Law on going to war
00:24 Jus in bello – Law in war

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