Thanks to a once-obscure law passed in 1789, foreign victims of foreign human rights abusers can use U.S. courts to sue their abusers. But the Supreme Court may soon ban such suits. That would be a shame, since they offer victims some measure of solace and give substance to underenforced human rights laws. The law should be upheld, and other countries should follow the U.S. lead.

Is international humanitarianism an act of charity or an act of duty? In fact, it is both -- a gift we have to give.

A move to indict Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir meets a sharp response from Arab and African leaders and raises questions about the future of Sudan's peace process.

Augusto Pinochet, head of the military junta that led Chile in the 1970s and 1980s, died on Sunday. Pinochet set an international legal precedent when he was arrested in Britain for crimes against humanity committed in Chile.

Cluster bombs made news after last summer’s war between Israel and Hezbollah, but efforts to curb their use remain grounded.

A new law signed by President Bush allows terrorist suspects held at Guantanamo Bay to be tried by secret military commissions. But critics say the bill violates the laws of war.

Noah Feldman says the Obama administration faces both old and new legal challenges over U.S. defense strategies.

The United Nations was responsible for establishing universal human rights standards, but its image in recent years has been tarnished by the record of its main body charged with safeguarding rights.

A global push is underway to ban cluster bombs after their use in the Israeli-Hezbollah conflict, as well as in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Kosovo, has left hundreds of noncombatants maimed or dead.

The fifty-three articles in this United Nations treaty outline every human's right to self determination and protection under the law, and are part of the International Bill of Human Rights. After more than twenty years of preparatory negotiations and resolutions, the covenant was signed on December 16, 1966 and it entered into force March 23, 1976.

The United States presented these reservations at its signing of the Geneva Convention on August 12, 1949.

The Geneva Conventions are a set of treaties regarding humanitarian issues of civilians and combatants in wartime. There are four Geneva Conventions, last revised in 1949, and three additional Protocols - two from 1977, and one from 2005.