Public Law Studies Quarterly

Legal Implications of Non-State Actors' Use of Biological Weapons

Document Type : Article

Authors

Mahmoud Ebrahimi 1
Mohammad Ali Taheri 2
Ali Chahkandi Nejad 3

1 Ph.D. in Criminal Law, Department of law, Birjand Branch, Islamic Azad University, Birjand, Iran

2 Assistant Prof., Department of Criminal Law and Criminology, Islamic Azad University of Birjand, Khorasan, Birjand, Iran

3 Assist Prof., Department of Criminal Law and Criminology, Islamic Azad University of Birjand, Khorasan, Birjand, Iran

https://doi.org/10.22059/jplsq.2022.328874.2860
Abstract
In the current age, one of the most important challenges of the international community is the phenomenon of bioterrorism, which has been used by some non-state actors in addition to states. Given the destructive effects and irreparable damage that the bioterrorist actions of non-state actors have on human life, the present article examines the legal aspects of this issue. In this regard, in the first part of the article, the concept of non-states actors and their approach to the use of biological weapons were explained. In the second part, the approach of the international law system to the use of biological weapons by non-state actors is examined, and finally in the third part, the approach of governments regarding the bioterrorist actions of non-state actors and their responsibilities in this field are explained. The findings of this article indicate that some non-state actors tend to use biological weapons to commit terrorist acts for a variety of reasons. Although several international instruments on terrorism and bioterrorism have been adopted so far, these instruments have not been able to prevent the bioterrorist activities of these groups. In addition, many governments in their domestic legal systems do not have adequate legal mechanisms to counter the bioterrorist activities of non-state actors, or for economic and political reasons are reluctant to counter the bioterrorist activities of these groups.

Keywords

terrorism
bioterrorism
non-state actors
biological weapons
Resolution 1540
Subjects

  1. English

    1. A) Books
    2. Declercq, W. & Others (2021). The Threat of Bioterrorism: A Global Security Challenge, European Army Interoperability Center, first pub.
    3. Mellado, R. P. (2016). The Biological Threat, non-state Actore and Biosecurity. Non-state Actors and the Proliferation of Weapons of mass Destruction, Spanish Institute for Strategic Studies, Ministry of Defence, First pub.
    4. Spanish Institute for Strategic Studies (2016). Non-state Actors and the Proliferation of Weapons of mass Destruction. Ministry of Defence, First pub.
    5. United Nations (2017). States Must Step Up Efforts to Check Spread of Deadly Weapons as Non-State Actors Exploit Rapid Technological Advances. Speakers Tell Security Council, Security Council Meetings Coverage.
    6. Wagner, M. (2013). Oxford Public International Law. Max Planck Encyclopedias of International Law.

     

    1. B) Articles
    2. Elyasa, Y.(2021) Bioterrorism: The Development and its Regulations and its Regulations According to the International Law. Lampung Journal of International Law (LaJIL), 3(1), 401-432.
    3. Gori1, S., & Singh Tomar, A. (2020). Bioterrorism & Biodefence: An Environmental and Public Health Preparedness. Rupkatha Journal on Interdisciplinary Studies in Humanities 12, no. 1. 25-61.
    4. Hessburegge, J. A. (2004). The Historical Development of the Doctrines of Attribution and Due Diligence in International Law. 36 NYU J Intl. 3-12.
    5. Immenkamp, B. (2015). ISIL/Da’esh and ‘Non-Conventional’ Weapons of Terror. 1-10.
    6. Isna Rasdianah, A., & Andika, S. (2017). Bioterrorism: The Role of Genetics and Molecular Biology. Prosiding Seminar Nasional Biology for Life 3, (1), 17- 28.
    7. Masahiko, A. (2008). Security Council Resolution 1540 to Combat WMD Terrorism: Effectiveness and Legitimacy in International Legislation. Journal of Conflict & Security Law 13, (3), 104-132.
    8. Revill, J. (2017). Past as Prologue? The Risk of Adoption of Chemical and Biological Weapons by Non-State Actors in the EU. European Journal of Risk Regulation, (8), 95-109.
    9. Townsend, R. & Espinoza (2015). Joseph,"Combating the threat of bio-terrorism by non-state actors. UN Old Dominion University Model United Nations Society.81-95.
    10. Seth, C. (2017). A Century of Biological-Weapons Programs (1915–2015): Reviewing the Evidence. The Nonproliferation Review Special Section: Nuclear Asia 24, (1-2), 35-51.

     

    1. C) Documents
    2. 1925 Geneva Protocol; Protocol for the Prohibition of the Use in War of Asphyxiating, Poisonous or Other Gases, and of Bacteriological Methods of Warfare (1925)
    3. International Convention for the Suppression of The Financing of Terrorism (1999)
    4. The convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological [Biological] and Toxin Weapons and Their Destruction 1972 (Biological Weapon Convention 1972)
    5. United Nation Security Council Resolution 1540 (2004)

     

    References

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    2. Mirzaei, A. (2011). Diplomacy in Controlling Biological Warfare. Tehran: Malek Ashtar University of Technology (In Persian).

     

    1. B) Articles
    2. Aghababaei, H. (2011). Security, Personal Freedom, and Managing the Risks of Security-Related Crimes. Legal Research Quarterly, (56), 75-112 (In Persian).
    3. Einollahi, B. & Molaei, Y. (2020). An Analytical Framework for Defining the Legal Status of Armed Non-State Actors under International Humanitarian Law: An Examination of Shiite Groups and Al-Qaeda Splinter Groups in Iraq and Syria. Foreign Relations Quarterly. 12 (2), 245-284 (In Persian).
    4. Hanjani, S.A. & Farhadnia, S. (2018). Examining the International Obligations of States for Acts Committed by Terrorist Groups. Legal Research Quarterly, 21 (84), 71-90 (In Persian).
    5. Jalali, M. & Poursaeed, F. (2020). The Rise of Non-State Terrorist Entities: International Obligations and the Challenges of Enhancing Oversight on Weapons of Mass Destruction. Academic Journal of Legal Studies. 12 (1), 35-74 (In Persian).
    6. Mirmohammadsadeghi, H. & Ghadiri Bahramabadi, R. (2015). The Role and Place of Politics in the Criminal Justice System's Response to Terrorist Offenses. Journal of Criminal Law Research. 4 (13), 9-41 (In Persian).
    7. Mousavi, A. A.; Gholam Hossein, Masoud; Masoud, Raei (2020). An Analytical Approach to the Mechanisms of Combating Bi-terrorism of Coronavirus in International Instruments and Domestic Legislation. Contemporary Political Studies Quarterly. 1 (35), 133-160 (In Persian).
    8. Tayebifard, A. (2005). Combating the Financing of Terrorism in International Instruments. International Law Review. (32), 259-306 (In Persian).
Public Law Studies Quarterly
Volume 54, Issue 3
Autumn 2024
Autumn 2024
Pages 1803-1823

  • Receive Date 22 August 2021
  • Revise Date 27 June 2022
  • Accept Date 12 September 2022

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