Directorate of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights

Inception and affiliation
The Directorate was created as an office in 2009 then upgraded into a directorate in 2015.
It is affiliated to the Army Staff for Personnel and located at Beirut - Ain el Remmaneh.

 

Tasks of the Directorate of IHL and IHRL

  1. Monitor the integration of agreements signed or ratified by the Lebanese State pertaining to International Humanitarian Law within military laws and regulations.
  2. Disseminate the IHL within the LAF and offer counseling to military units for proper application.
  3. Coordinate with the Directorate of Training to include the IHL courses within all levels of curriculum.
  4. Keep informed of training courses opened by the Directorate of Training to  introduce the IHL and its principles or to prepare qualified trainers.
  5. Coordinate with the Directorate of Operations to observe the IHL principles in its operation orders.
  6. Keep track of all conventions and agreements signed by the Lebanese State related to the IHL, the IHRL, prohibition or restriction the use of certain weapons or conduct in the battlefield in order to conform military regulations to these conventions and agreements.
  7. Establish coordination between the LAF Command and international organizations and associations concerned with IHL and IHRL to highlight the LAF role in this regard, enhance its image and safeguard its good name.
  8. Get informed of the complaints and allegations of torture and all transgressions and violations of the IHL and IHRL to check their veracity and take necessary measures.
  9. Conduct legal visits to the prisons subsidiary to the MOD to check their state, inspect the detainees, the detention conditions and the observance of the Human Rights Law.
  10. Record the violations of the IHL and IHRL within the LAF and set up a relevant database.
  11. Cooperate with the Directorate of Orientation to respond to any allegation in the media of human rights violation perpetrated by the LAF.
  12. Monitor the situation of missing people and the corpses of protected persons by the IHL in the area of operations of the LAF, and record all information related to finding corpses of victims of war and natural disasters.
  13. Follow and record any information pertaining to the corpses of military personnel or to the situation of missing people in coordination with the competent services and committees in the LAF.
  14. Coordinate with the Lebanese Mines Action Center to register the victims of cluster bombs, mines or any other unexploded projectiles throughout all Lebanese territory.
  15. Monitor the compliance of the Israeli enemy with the laws and norms of war, its observance of the signed conventions of the IHL, register the violations and file a report when necessary.

Main activities of the IHLHR Directorate

  1. Adopting curricula to train in International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights Law at all educational levels.
  2. Establishing the position of advisor on International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights within the Army’s General Staff for operations and major units, based on Article 82 of the First Additional Protocol to the four Geneva Conventions.
  3. Monitoring the implementation of recommendations concerning the army issued by the Committee Against Torture (CAT).
  4. Issuing an amendment to Article 16 of the General Military Regulations concerning respect for International Humanitarian Law.
  5. Preparing two training manuals on International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights Law and publishing them on the Army’s website.
  6. Issuing instructions requiring that the operations copy include the distinctive emblem identifying civil defense sites.
  7. Issuing measures and procedures to ensure the protection of cultural property that enjoys special safeguarding.
  8. Amending the Military Prisons Directorate instructions to comply with the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Mandela Rules, 2015).
  9. Circulating instructions on the procedures to be followed in the event of a hunger strike by civilian prisoners.
  10. Contributing to the amendment of Decree 6236/1995 regarding solitary confinement to align it with the recommendations issued by the Committee Against Torture (CAT).
  11. Accompanying delegations of the International Committee of the Red Cross during their visits to military prisons.
  12. Integrating the principles of the Convention on Conventional Weapons and three of its protocols (CCW 1980) into military instructions and rules of engagement.
  13. Following up on the identification of bodies buried in the Ministry of National Defense cemeteries, in coordination with the International Committee of the Red Cross.
  14. Circulating agreements related to International Humanitarian Law and the core international human rights treaties on the Army’s internal network.
  15. In order to promote a culture of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights at all levels, publications related to the general principles of military conduct in the Lebanese Army in the field were distributed.
  16. Designing a publication on special protective emblems during armed conflict and providing it to units for placement on directive boards within the center.
  17. Issuing instructions on the distribution of special emblems for protected vehicles (ambulance, civil defense, etc.) to units and explaining their meaning.
  18. Issuing instructions to strictly enforce the principles of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights during military and security operations and to report any violations.
  19. Providing opinions on the drafting of laws and decrees related to International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights during their discussion by parliamentary committees and other relevant bodies.
  20. Preparing legal responses to correspondence received from United Nations bodies or any governmental or non-governmental organization.
  21. Collaborating with the Human Rights Institute at the Beirut Bar Association in preparing a guide (“Children in Contact with the Law”) and two guides (“The Crime of Human Trafficking in Lebanon” and “Procedures Concerning Victims”).
  22. Delivering lectures on the law of armed conflicts and the ethics of war at Lebanese universities and schools.
  23. Chairing a committee to respond to all points and issues that may be raised by the International Committee of the Red Cross regarding detention conditions in the Ministry of National Defense prisons.
  24. Representing the Ministry of National Defense in preparatory meetings for developing the national strategy to combat violent extremism.
  25. Conducting regular inspections of army units to ensure their compliance with the instructions issued by the Army Command regarding International Humanitarian Law.
  26. Issuing instructions to the military judicial police to comply with the provisions of Article 47 of the Code of Criminal Procedure concerning the reinforcement of fundamental guarantees and the activation of defense rights.
  27. Delivering lectures in several countries on the Lebanese Army’s experience in implementing International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights Law (Qatar, Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia, etc.).
  28. Organizing seminars on the role of women and gender balance in the army, in collaboration with the Canadian training and cooperation team.
  29. Conducting workshops on “Human Rights and the Law of Armed Conflicts – Security Dimensions of Managing Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons in Lebanon,” in cooperation with the U.S. Defense Institute for International Legal Studies (DIILS).
  30. Addressing important and sensitive issues in the field of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights. The Permanent Advisory Committee has previously inspected all military prisons and prepared reports on their conditions, proposing measures to address the recorded observations.
  31. Cooperating with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in training courses on “vulnerable groups, including refugees” for officers from units concerned with this subject.
  32. Representing the Ministry of National Defense in preparatory meetings for participation in the discussion of the third national periodic report on civil and political rights in Geneva.
  33. Chairing the committee investigating the detainees of the Arsal events.
  34. Organizing workshops and training courses in cooperation with the International Committee of the Red Cross – Beirut (trainer on International Humanitarian Law, use of force during law enforcement operations, Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, classification of armed conflicts, healthcare in detention facilities, etc.).
  35. Organizing a roundtable with the commanders of military prisons to discuss challenges related to family contact for detainees, in coordination with the International Committee of the Red Cross.
  36. Conducting awareness lectures in units on “The Right to Peaceful Assembly and Demonstration Without Violating Other Rights” and “The Lebanese Army Code of Conduct in Law Enforcement.”
  37. Monitoring the primary healthcare project in the prisons of the Beirut, Bekaa, and North regions, as well as the Military Police Prison in Rihanieh.
  38. A course on “Human Rights Principles in Investigation and Interrogation” for investigators in the Intelligence Directorate, Military Police, and regional police, in cooperation with the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung organization.
  39. Foundational courses for officer-assistants on International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights: operational standards.

Contact us:

  • e-mail:IHLHR@army.gov.lb
  • Fax: 01 293658
  • Tel: 05 420000  ext 30711