The Harvard National Security Journal is pleased to announce that the Honorable Juan C. Zarate has joined the journal’s Advisory Board.

By John Thorlin, NSJ Staff Editor - Writing for the Yale Journal of International Law, Prof. Robert Sloane of the Boston University School of Law delves into the national security variant of the old debate about ends and means-the distinction and relationship between the concepts of jus ad bellum, the law governing resort to force, and jus in bello, the […]

Writing for the Council on Foreign Relation’s Center for Preventive Action, Steven Simon sets out to “assesses the likelihood of an Israeli strike against Iran despite U.S. objections, the implications for the United States should it take place, the policy options available to reduce the chances of its occurrence, and the measures that could be taken to mitigate the potentially […]

By Mat Trachok, NSJ Staff Editor - In a recent article in The New Yorker, Jane Mayer considers the legal and moral implications of the Central Intelligence Agency’s covert drone program in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) of Pakistan. Under the Bush Administration, the CIA began using unmanned drone aircraft, most often Predators and more recently Reapers, to conduct […]

By Jonathan Abrams, NSJ Staff Editor, HLS 2012 The Second Circuit ruled on November 2nd that Maher Arar, a Canadian citizen who claimed he was a victim of “extraordinary rendition,” may not sue American officials for damages because Congress has not authorized such suits. Mr. Arar was detained at Kennedy International Airport on September 26, 2002 on suspicion of ties […]

In this unsigned opinion released yesterday, the Supreme Court appeared to recognize that the toll of combat stress on America’s war veterans could be a mitigating factor in sentencing decisions. The case, Porter v. McCollum, 08-10537, involves the conviction of a Korean War veteran, George Porter Jr., for the murder of his former girlfriend and her boyfriend in 1986. The […]

By NSJ Staff Writer On November 17th, the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed, but remanded for re-sentencing, the conviction of Lynne Stewart for activities arising out of her representation of Omar Abdel-Rahman, the “Blind Sheikh.”

By Mat Trachok, HLS 2012 Staff Writer There has been considerable debate over the Obama Administration’s decision to try Khalid Shaikh Mohammed (KSM) in a Manhattan federal court. NSJ provides a brief overview of the recent opinion pieces on the topic.

By NSJ Staff Writer Tomorrow, November 18, Attorney General Eric Holder will appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee, likely facing questions regarding and criticism of his decision to abandon military tribunals for five 9/11 terrorists in favor of using the civilian criminal justice system. A debate reemerged after Holder’s announcement last Friday that five detainees currently housed at Guantanamo, including […]

By John Thorlin, HLS 2012 NSJ Staff Writer On October 29, 2009, Harvard Law School Prof. Alan Dershowitz appeared before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) to appeal the conviction of Johan Tarculovski. Tarculovski was charged with individual criminal responsibility (Art. 7 §1 ICTY Statute), as well as superior hierarchical responsibility (Art. 7 § 3 ICTY Statute), […]