The Law of War by Ingrid Detter is a single-volume work on the law of war as it existed at the beginning of the 21st century. Theoretically the law of war entails both jus in bello and jus ad bellum, that is, the law regarding the conduct of war and the law on the right to wage war. Detter only briefly touches on the latter in this book, and then only so far as to say that, for all practical purposes, the UN Charter has outlawed the right to wage war in all but defensive situations. What you are left with, then, is a fairly thorough account of the various multilateral treaties that have been negotiated since the late 19th century covering what is permissible in war.

Although she resists using the phrase, Detter expends quite a bit of effort discussing the extent to which the law of war has become jus cogens and, therefore, binding on all non-signatories. She also discusses whether non-state actors can be subjects of the law of war, and, if so, under what circumstances that is so.

Since this edition was published in 2000, there are of course some important aspects of the law of war that became important during the course of the 2000s that Detter does not address in much detail, namely, the law on preventive war and the concept of the responsibility to protect and what that concept means for the legality of humanitarian-inspired intervention (Detter does discuss the interventions that occurred in Bosnia and Kosovo during the 1990s, but not specifically with an intent to discuss the responsibility to protect).

The Law of War is a good place to start for those looking to become versed in the law of war, but it will by no means give one a complete picture of what that law is. ( )

A useful enough reference book for those of us who, sadly, have to deal with human rights violations in the context of war. ( )