Leuven Manual on the International Law Applicable to Peace Operations Prepared by an International Group of Experts at the Invitation of the International Society for Military Law and the Law of War

The Leuven Manual is the authoritative, comprehensive overview of the rules that are to be followed in peace operations conducted by the United Nations, the European Union, NATO, the African Union and other organisations, with detailed commentary on best practice in relation to those rules. Topics covered include human rights, humanitarian law, gender aspects, the use of force and detention by peacekeepers, the protection of civilians, and the relevance of the laws of the host State. The international group of expert authors includes leading academics, together with military officers and policy officials with practical experience in contemporary peace operations, supported in an individual capacity by input from experts working for the UN, the African Union, NATO, and the International Committee of the Red Cross. This volume is intended to be of assistance to states and international organisations involved in the planning and conduct of peace operations, and practitioners and academia.

Part I. Introduction: 1. Scope of the Manual; 2. Short history of the law of peace operations; Part II. Applicable Legal Framework for Conducting Peace Operations and How The Regimes Relate to Each Other: 3. The Mandate; 4. Organisation-specific legal framework and procedures: 5. The applicability of international human rights law in peace operations; 6. The applicability of international humanitarian law in peace operations; 7. Implementing a gender perspective; 8. Status of forces and status of mission; 9. Host state law; 10. Sending state law; 11. Troop contributing country memorandums of understanding and other instruments and regulations; Part III. Conducting a United Nations (Mandated) Peace Operation: 12. The use of force; 13. Detention; 14. The protection of civilians; 15. Aerial and maritime dimensions of peace operations; 16. Monitoring compliance in the field of conduct and discipline; 17. Promotion of the rule of law; 18. Demining and removal of explosive remnants; Part IV. Accountability and Responsibility: 19. Accountability and responsibility in peace operations; 20. Third party claims; 21. International criminal responsibility and international criminal justice in relation to peace operations.

Terry Gill is Professor of Military Law at the University of Amsterdam and the Netherlands Defence Academy, Director of the Research Program on the Law of Armed Conflict and Peace Operations at the Amsterdam Center for International Law and of the Netherlands Research Forum on the Law of Armed Conflict and Peace Operations (LACPO).
Dieter Fleck has served as legal advisor in various Bundeswehr commands, the German Chancellor's Office, and the Federal Ministry of Defence. He has published on issues of international law and security.
Bill Boothby, Air Commodore, retired from Royal Air Force Legal Services in 2011. He has published on conflict law and armed conflict.
Alfons Vanheusden is a Senior Legal Advisor ('Conseiller général') at the Belgian Ministry of Defence, and the Assistant Secretary-General of the International Society for Military Law and the Law of War.