Matthew C. Waxman examines whether cyberattacks are a use of force as defined by the UN Charter.

Civil liberties will present the winner of the 2012 U.S. presidential elections with challenges related to counterterrorism powers and practices, as well as challenges related to privacy rights, says CFR's Matthew C. Waxman.

Recent events in Darfur raise the familiar question of whether international law facilitates the kind of early, decisive, and coherent action needed to effectively combat genocide. Matthew C. Waxman argues that putting decisions about international intervention solely in the hands of the UN Security Council risks undermining the threat or use of intervention when it may be most potent in stopping mass atrocities.

With his new executive order on Guantanamo, President Obama acknowledges that the controversial detention center will remain open for some time, says CFR's Matthew Waxman, but provides improved protections and review processes.

Congress passed a short-term extension for three surveillance provisions of the Patriot Act to allow for more debate, which CFR's Matthew Waxman says will likely focus on tightening restrictions and oversight.

The Supreme Court's upholding of bans on "material support" for foreign terror groups, even involving legal activities, reflects a further post-9/11 broadening of federal powers, writes CFR's Matthew C. Waxman.

The Times Square bomb plot has triggered questions about when and whether suspect Faisal Shahzad, a Pakistan-born American citizen, should have been informed of his Miranda rights. These questions are likely to gain traction in the weeks ahead, says expert Matthew C. Waxman, who believes it would be wrong to treat all captured terrorists as enemy combatants subject to military trial.

Recent events in Darfur raise the familiar question of whether international law facilitates the kind of early, decisive, and coherent action needed to effectively combat genocide. Matthew C. Waxman argues that putting decisions about international intervention solely in the hands of the UN Security Council risks undermining the threat or use of intervention when it may be most potent in stopping mass atrocities.

The Obama administration's decision to try accused 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed in New York but other accused terrorists by military commission will revive debate over Guantanamo Bay and the laws of war, says CFR's Matthew Waxman.