This lecture examines how a concept that was designed to criminalize warfare against entire populations was limited in its legal definition so that states can conduct such warfare without being easily prosecuted for genocide. The results of this fashioning of international law to suit states rather than people can be seen in many armed conflicts since WW2, culminating in the current destructions of Ukraine and Gaza. To remedy this deliberate conceptual mistake at the foundation of International criminal law, it is necessary to understand the relevant concepts and their function.

Prof. Dirk Moses is  the Anne and Bernard Spitzer Professor of International Relationsat the City College of New York, CUNY.