The presentation examines on the one side the practice of denial or restriction of humanitarian assistance to protected persons in the situation of an armed conflict, by explaining also the conditions when those restrictions may be imposed; on the other side the practice of the use of humanitarian assistance objects for military purposes and the possibilities of the classification of humanitarian assistance personnel and objects as military targets which might be lawfully attacked. The presentation analyses the conclusions of the International Court of Justice’s advisory opinion on Obligations of Israel in relation to the Presence and Activities of the United Nations, Other International Organizations and Third States in and in relation to the Occupied Palestinian Territoryof 22 October 2025 and identifies gaps in the Court’s reasoning.
Patrycja Grzybek (Dr. Habil. Iuris) is a professor at the University of Warsaw. Her research focuses on the use of force, humanitarian law, and the practice of international adjudication. She authored Human and Non-Human Targets in Armed Conflicts (CUP: 2022), as well as Polish Contributions to International Criminal Law (Brill: 2025); The Russian-Ukrainian Conflict and War Crimes (Routledge: 2025) and Criminal Responsibility for the Crime of Aggression (Routledge: 2014).
Date: 12 January 2026
Time: 6.00-7.00 pm CET
The presentation will take place online via MS Teams. Please register below. The link and login data will be sent to those registered at the day of the event.
Registration:
Please fill in this form to register: https://forms.cloud.microsoft/e/3yKUSx7H9Z
If you have any question, do not hesitate to contact Alexandra
Konecny (research assistant to Prof. Andreas Kulick):
TwoLaW is an online lecture series on the theory, history, policy and practice of the laws of war. From Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to the Hamas’ attack on Israel and the ensuing conflict in the Middle East, rarely in recent memory have both the ius contra bellum and the ius in bello faced so many daunting challenges: use of force by and self-defence against non-state actors; the participation of private military companies in hostilities; the digitization of warfare; the protection of civilians and the environment in international, non-international and hybrid armed conflicts; peace agreements and post-conflict claims; international criminal responsibility before and beyond the ICC – to name but a few of them. TwoLaW invites engaging discussions on these matters, seeking to bring into dialogue the law on the prohibition of the use of force and international humanitarian law despite their necessary doctrinal separation.
TwoLaW provides a critical perspective on pertinent challenges of the laws of war, broadly understood, in light of their theoretical, doctrinal, historical and political implications. Each one-hour event features a thought-provoking presentation by a leading scholar in the first half hour followed by a discussion in the second half hour. All events are held exclusively online from 6-7 pm CET.
