Africa’s AI Strategies Cannot Say No
African nations are rapidly adopting AI strategies—Zimbabwe launched its National AI Strategy in March, Ghana’s received cabinet approval, and Nigeria, Kenya, Rwanda, and the AU have all formalized frameworks. While framed as "development" tools, the policies lean heavily on foreign tech partners, offering little protection for data sovereignty or labor rights. The article highlights concrete abuses, such as Kenyan content moderators earning $1.32‑$2 per hour and suffering PTSD, and notes corporate influence in strategy drafts, like Google’s cloud‑first recommendations in Nigeria’s plan. It argues that the development narrative obscures extractive relationships and calls for regulatory‑focused frameworks that can actually say no.
Cisco’s Real Stakes: Digitally Aiding and Abetting
On April 28, 2026 the U.S. Supreme Court will hear Cisco Systems v. Doe I, a case that asks whether a U.S. corporation and its CEO can be sued under the Alien Tort Statute and the Torture Victim Protection Act...
Early Edition: April 16, 2026
Senior Pakistani mediators arrived in Tehran to negotiate an extension of the U.S.-Iran ceasefire that expires next week, while the Trump administration’s team exchanged draft proposals with Tehran. The Pentagon announced the deployment of roughly 10,200 additional troops, including 6,000...
Is the Government Using Counterterrorism Surveillance Tools to Surveil American Companies?
The 2024 Reforming Intelligence and Securing America Act expanded FISA Section 702, letting agencies collect communications of non‑U.S. persons abroad and incidentally capture Americans’ data. The article alleges that ICE and other immigration officials are mining that data through back‑door searches...
The Presidential Records Act Is Constitutional
On April 1 2026 the Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel issued an opinion declaring the Presidential Records Act (PRA) facially unconstitutional, arguing it exceeds Congress’s authority and infringes executive autonomy. The article rebuts this view, noting that Congress, the courts,...
The International Legal Consequences and Imprudence of U.S. Assistance to Kurdish Rebels in Iran
U.S. officials have discussed supplying Kurdish rebel groups in Iran with weapons and logistical aid to spark a regime‑change offensive, despite a fragile cease‑fire. International law scholars argue that such support would likely violate the principle of non‑intervention, echoing the...
Early Edition: April 15, 2026
President Trump announced that a second round of direct talks with Iran could occur in Pakistan within two days, while expressing opposition to a 20‑year nuclear suspension proposal. The U.S. blockade of vessels heading to Iranian ports showed limited effect,...
Separating Fact From Fiction in FACE Act Enforcement
The Trump administration released a report alleging that the Justice Department’s enforcement of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act unfairly targeted religious Americans. The analysis shows the report cherry‑picks internal emails, ignores court rulings and the surge...
Bogus “Antifa” Designations and FBI Warrantless Access to Americans’ Communications
Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which lets U.S. agencies collect foreign communications and incidentally sweep up Americans’ data, is set to expire on April 20 unless Congress reauthorizes it. The FBI currently can query the database for...
The Trump Administration’s Fraud Problem
The Trump administration has adopted a strategy of framing the withholding of congressionally appropriated funds as fraud prevention, using that pretext to target Medicaid, SNAP, and other assistance programs in Democratic‑led states. While genuine fraud exists, the administration bypasses established...
Early Edition: April 14, 2026
U.S. officials offered Iran a 20‑year suspension of nuclear activity, while Tehran countered with a five‑year limit, widening the gap in weekend talks in Islamabad. Simultaneously, the United States began a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, with Israel as...
Early Edition: April 13, 2026
U.S. Vice President JD Vance’s 16‑hour peace talks with Iran in Islamabad ended without an agreement, as Tehran refused to abandon its nuclear ambitions. President Trump responded by ordering a naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, deploying destroyers and...
Digest of Recent Articles on Just Security (Apr. 4-10, 2026)
Just Security released its weekly Digest (Apr 4‑10, 2026), aggregating 13 new analyses that span the escalating U.S.–Israel‑Iran conflict, emerging war‑crimes discourse, and evolving legal‑policy debates. The collection includes three pieces probing Iranian intelligence gaps, a proposal to codify forced marriage as...
The Tightrope Walk of Democratic Defense: Lessons From Taiwan’s Platform Governance Challenge
Taiwan’s 2023 ban on Chinese social app RedNote highlighted the clash between democratic safeguards and the need to counter Chinese information manipulation. The ban drew criticism for its narrow justification, limited effectiveness, and perceived disproportionality, exposing a governance trilemma of...
Amid Shaky Ceasefire, War in Iran Is Starving Sudan
An April 7 cease‑fire deal suspends U.S. air strikes on Iran, but the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed, choking humanitarian logistics. The shutdown has forced food, fertilizer and medical shipments destined for Sudan to be rerouted around the Cape...
Codifying Forced Marriage in the Crimes Against Humanity Convention: From Jurisprudence to Treaty Text
During the UN Preparatory Committee’s first session, states voiced growing backing for explicitly adding forced marriage to the draft Crimes‑Against‑Humanity Convention. Historically prosecuted under a catch‑all “other inhumane acts” category, forced marriage has faced legal uncertainty and defense challenges. The...
Continuing Crisis in Strait of Hormuz: Why Iran’s Hold Is Illegal and U.S. Military Force Alone Fails
Iran has entrenched de facto control over the Strait of Hormuz, imposing a $2 million transit fee and selectively allowing vessels from allied nations. Despite a U.S. two‑week cease‑fire pledge, American forces have not defined a clear naval role, and the...
Reprisals and the Paradox of Trust: Why Threats of Retaliation in the Iran War Are Unlikely to Work
The article argues that threats of retaliation, or reprisals, are unlikely to succeed in the Iran‑Israel‑U.S. conflict because they depend on mutual trust that simply does not exist. While international law now bars most forms of reprisals, the piece treats...
The Dangers of Hegseth’s “Warfighter” Ethos
On Feb. 28 a U.S. Tomahawk missile hit Shajareh Tayyebeh Elementary School in Minab, Iran, killing 168 civilians, including over 100 children. Investigations indicate outdated intelligence misidentified the school, which sat beside a military site, as a legitimate target. The...
Myths and Facts About Section 702 Backdoor Searches: A Reply to George Croner
The Brennan Center released a concise "Myths and Facts" brief on Section 702 backdoor searches, directly countering George Croner’s Just Security response. It underscores that regular federal courts—including the Second and Tenth Circuits—have ruled that such searches constitute separate Fourth Amendment...
When War Crimes Rhetoric Becomes Battlefield Reality: The Slippery Slope to Total War on Iran
President Donald Trump publicly threatened simultaneous attacks on Iran’s electric power plants, a stance that conflicts with established international law protecting civilian infrastructure. The Geneva Conventions and the U.S. Law of War Manual require a definite military advantage and proportionality...
Global Governance of Emerging Technologies: Counterterrorism Challenges at the United Nations Security Council
Terrorist groups are increasingly leveraging widely available commercial technologies—especially AI, social media, and biometric tools—to enhance recruitment, propaganda, and operational planning. The United Nations Security Council has responded through a series of resolutions (1624, 2178, 2396) that embed non‑binding guiding...
Ukraine’s Long-Term Landmine Problem
Ukraine now faces the world’s heaviest land‑mine burden, with over 20% of its territory—about 139,000 km², the size of New York State—contaminated by unexploded ordnance from Russia’s invasion. An estimated two million mines have been laid, a level of contamination unseen in...
Washington Is Backing the Wrong Lebanon Strategy
Washington’s current Lebanon policy conflates state‑building with Hezbollah disarmament, treating them as separate tracks while backing Israel’s military pressure. The article argues that durable peace on Israel’s northern border requires a political process that strengthens the Lebanese state, enforces the...
“Precision Strike Missiles” (PrSMs) in Iran War: The U.S. Obligation to Conduct a Legal Review of New Weapons
The U.S. Army’s Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) entered combat during Operation Epic Fury, marking its first operational use. A New York Times report linked the missile to a strike in Lamerd, Iran that hit a sports hall and an elementary...
The Trump Administration Is Sabotaging Its Own Arctic Strategy
President Trump has made the Arctic a centerpiece of U.S. national‑security policy, issuing executive orders to fast‑track critical‑mineral projects like the Ambler Road and to add new Arctic Security Cutters. An “ICE Pact” with Finland and Canada aims to revive...
Khamenei’s Killing and the Perilous Death of the Assassination Ban
On Feb. 28, the United States and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury, a coordinated air campaign that killed Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several senior officials. The strike, praised by former President Donald Trump, directly violated the U.S. executive‑order ban on political...
A Feasible Precaution Ignored: AI Targeting Algorithms and the Failure to Recognize Protected Emblems
Recent civilian deaths in Afghanistan, Lebanon, Gaza and Iran highlight how AI‑driven targeting algorithms can misclassify harmless objects as threats. In each case, water‑filled containers were mistaken for explosives, leading to lethal strikes by U.S. drones, Israeli missiles and Tomahawk...
The Financial Action Task Force: An Accountability Mechanism for the United States
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is conducting its third mutual evaluation of the United States, scrutinizing compliance with anti‑money‑laundering and counter‑terrorism financing standards, especially Recommendation 8 that protects legitimate non‑profit organizations. The Trump administration has intensified regulatory pressure on...
Statement by Israeli International Law Scholars Concerning Israel’s New “Death Penalty for Terrorists” Law
A coalition of Israeli international law scholars condemned Israel’s newly enacted “Death Penalty for Terrorists” law, which mandates hanging as the default sentence for Palestinians convicted of deadly attacks in the West Bank. The legislation expands capital punishment to a...
A Response to the Brennan Center’s “Myths and Facts” On Section 702 Backdoor Searches
Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act will expire on April 20, 2026 unless Congress renews it, threatening a key intelligence tool for counter‑terrorism and cyber threat detection. The author disputes the Brennan Center’s claim that USP identifiers used...
A Survey of Sovereign Standing: Developments in State-Led Lawsuits Against the Federal Government
State‑led lawsuits against the federal government have surged to record levels, with more than 100 cases filed in each of the past two administrations and 95 new filings logged in 2026 alone. Courts are routinely granting relief, allowing states to...
Claude and the Constitution: Questions Congress Should Ask Before Renewing Section 702
Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act will sunset on April 20, 2026, forcing Congress to decide whether to renew a tool that lets the NSA collect foreign communications but often sweeps up Americans. The article highlights the growing...
AI Needs Accountability. We Can’t Rely on Companies and Governments Alone.
The fallout from Anthropic’s secret rollback of its Responsible Scaling safety pledge and its models’ use in U.S. military operations in Venezuela and Iran highlights a broken AI accountability system. Companies toggle self‑regulation when convenient, while governments intervene inconsistently, often...
Will the Next U.N. Counterterrorism Strategy Hold States Accountable For Their Use of AI?
The U.N. Secretary‑General warned that terrorist groups are increasingly exploiting artificial intelligence, while states are deploying AI in counter‑terrorism operations without robust human‑rights safeguards. Recent examples include U.S. and Israeli militaries using AI to select bombing targets, and the UN’s...
When Intelligence Fails: A Legal Targeting Analysis of the Minab School Strike
On Feb. 28, 2026 a U.S.-launched Tomahawk missile struck the Shajarah Tayyebeh girls’ elementary school in Minab, Iran, killing at least 165 civilians, mostly children. A preliminary U.S. military inquiry attributes the tragedy to a targeting error caused by outdated...
Just Security’s Artificial Intelligence Archive
Just Security has launched a comprehensive AI archive that aggregates its analytical pieces on artificial intelligence dating back to 2020. The catalog groups articles into themes such as AI governance, national security, and industry impacts, making it easier for policymakers,...
Ban Pay-to-Play National Security Approvals
In December, TikTok agreed to spin off its U.S. operations to a consortium of Oracle, Silver Lake and Abu Dhabi’s MGX, creating TikTok USDS Joint Venture with roughly 45% ownership for the investors. The Wall Street Journal revealed the investors...
Targeting Enemy Logistics
Recent escalations in the Israel‑Iran conflict have seen both sides strike critical logistics infrastructure—including oil depots, gas fields, ports, banks and data centers—across the Gulf region. The attacks on the South Pars and North Dome gas fields pushed Brent crude...
Iran Built a Military to Survive the American Way of War: Should We Be Surprised?
Four weeks into the U.S.-Israel campaign against Iran, more than 8,000 Iranian targets have been struck, yet Iran’s missile and drone attacks have only fallen 90% and 95% respectively, and senior leaders remain operational. Tehran’s military has survived by decades...
Early Edition: March 25, 2026
The United States has delivered a 15‑point cease‑fire proposal to Iran through Pakistani intermediaries, while simultaneously preparing to deploy roughly 2,000 troops from the 82nd Airborne Division and an additional 5,000 Marines to the Middle East. Iran has dismissed the...
Energy Security Is National Security: Fixing America’s Incoherent Energy Policies
President Trump’s administration has rolled back federal incentives for wind and solar while using emergency powers to keep uneconomic coal plants online, driving higher electricity and gasoline prices. Despite renewables now accounting for the majority of new U.S. generation capacity...
Hegseth Didn’t Revive an Ancient Warrior Ethos. He Repeated an American Pattern.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s recent use of the phrase “no quarter” revives a longstanding American rhetorical tradition that emerges when an enemy is portrayed as racially or civilizationally inferior. The article traces the expression from 17th‑century colonial massacres through...
The Court Gutted Congress’s War Power. It’s Time to Give It Back.
The article contends that the Supreme Court’s 1983 INS v. Chadha decision, which invalidated legislative vetoes, undermines Section 5(c) of the War Powers Resolution—a tool that lets Congress order the withdrawal of U.S. forces via a concurrent resolution. It argues that...
Firearms Trafficking Comes to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in Recent Advisory Opinion
On March 5 the Inter‑American Court of Human Rights issued advisory opinion OC‑30/25 at Mexico’s request, clarifying state and private‑sector obligations to prevent illicit firearms trafficking. The opinion links illegal arms flows—over 70% of seized Mexican guns trace to the United...
Early Edition: March 17, 2026
Israel announced a night‑time strike on Tehran that it says eliminated Iran’s Supreme National Security Council secretary Ali Larijani and the head of the Basij militia, Gholamreza Soleimani. Iran responded with missile and drone attacks on UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar,...
Fourth Circuit Affirms $42 Million Jury Verdict in Abu Ghraib Case
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed a $42 million jury verdict against CACI Premier Technology for conspiracy to commit torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment at Abu Ghraib. The panel rejected CACI’s extraterritoriality arguments, finding that U.S....
Expert Q&A on Key Law of Naval Warfare Issues in the Conflict with Iran
The ongoing conflict between the United States, Israel and Iran has expanded from coastal strikes to direct attacks on Iranian Navy and IRGC vessels, including the sinking of IRIS Dena and the internment of IRIS Bushehr and IRIS Lavan. Both...
Hypothetical Legal Advice to SecDef Hegseth on “No Quarter” Statement (From Office of General Counsel)
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s March 13, 2026 remarks that U.S. forces would give "no quarter, no mercy" to Iranian combatants could be interpreted as an illegal command under the law of armed conflict. The Department of War’s General Counsel...
How Trump’s New Global Gag Rules Will Undermine US Interests Abroad
The Trump administration issued three final rules that expand the Mexico City Policy to all U.S. foreign assistance, tying roughly $40 billion in non‑military aid to compliance with anti‑abortion, gender‑ideology, and DEI restrictions. The rules prohibit NGOs receiving any U.S. funds...