IV.  APPLICATION OF INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS LAW AND INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW BY THE UNITED NATIONS For example, the International Commission of Inquiry on Darfur was established in September 2004 by Security Council resolution 1564 (2004), adopted under Chapter VII of the Charter, “to investigate reports of violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law in Darfur by all parties”, “to determine also whether or not acts of genocide have occurred”, and “to identify the perpetrators of such violations with a view to ensuring that those responsible are held accountable”. In its report, the Commission indicated that “[t]wo main bodies of law apply to the Sudan in the conflict in Darfur: international human rights law and international humanitarian law. The two are complementary. For example, they both aim to protect human life and dignity, prohibit discrimination on various grounds, and protect against torture or other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. They both seek to guarantee safeguards for persons subject to criminal justice proceedings, and to ensure basic rights including those related to health, food and housing. They both include provisions for the protection of women and vulnerable groups, such as children and displaced persons.” The Commission added that “States are responsible under international human rights law to guarantee the protection and preservation of human rights and fundamental freedoms at all times, in war and peace alike. The obligation of the State to refrain from any conduct that violates human rights, as well as the duty to protect those living within its jurisdiction, is inherent in this principle. Additional Protocol II to the Geneva Conventions evokes the protection of human rights law for the human person. This in itself applies the duty of the State to protect also to situations of armed conflict. International human rights law and humanitarian law are, therefore, mutually reinforcing and overlapping in situations of armed conflict.”195 As a result of the Commission’s report, the Security Council referred the situation of Darfur to the International Criminal Court,196 whose Prosecutor subsequently opened an investigation. Similarly, the Commission of Inquiry on Lebanon, in its 2006 report to the Human Rights Council, indicated that “[w]hile the conduct of armed   S/2005/60, paras. 143–144.   Resolution 1593 (2005). 195 196 115

Select target paragraph3

Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents