A new report published by the Human Rights Centre (HRC) at QUB School of Law examines the legality of anti-personnel mines, booby traps and improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

The 30-page report is presented as a contribution to a debate over whether these devices should be considered war crimes under the Rome Statute.

In August, Belgium submitted an amendment to have the use of anti-personnel mines added to the Rome Statute as a war crime.

Senior lecturer Dr Luke Moffett, director of the HRC, told Irish Legal News: “Our report examines the legality and scope of whether or not anti-personnel mines can be considered war crimes.

“We also felt that given the experience in Northern Ireland and ongoing violence in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan that booby-traps and improvised explosive devices should also be considered war crimes where they are used indiscriminately against civilians or treacherously, such as bombs being attached to toys in Syria. In Afghanistan alone in the first six months of 2017 some 337 civilians were killed and 591 injured by improvised explosive devices.

“The report is a collaboration between our students and staff who are researching on international humanitarian law and found that there was very little written on these devices as war crimes.

“We hope that the report can inform the debate on adding new war crimes to the Rome Statute.”