Incidents that occur outside the context of armed conflict or active hostilities are governed by international human rights law rather than by the law of armed conflict.
October 31, 2025
high
legal
This distinction determines which legal framework applies to the use of force in peacetime or non‑international operations.
In 2025 the Trump administration stated that it had determined the United States was in a non-international armed conflict with designated terrorist organizations and authorized military operations against those organizations pursuant to the law of armed conflict.
October 14, 2025
high
temporal
Describes a legal determination and the claimed legal basis for conducting military operations.