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We are (or Will Soon Be) at War With the Islamic State
Secretary of State Kerry said yesterday:
We're engaged in a major counterterrorism operation [against the Islamic State], and it's going to be a long-term counterterrorism operation. I think war is the wrong terminology and analogy . . .
Published by The Lawfare Institute
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Secretary of State Kerry said yesterday:
We're engaged in a major counterterrorism operation [against the Islamic State], and it's going to be a long-term counterterrorism operation. I think war is the wrong terminology and analogy . . . .Though the Secretary was not thinking in legal terms, it is worth noting that his statement is belied by the Obama administration’s legal theory. The Obama administration has long maintained that under the AUMF the United States is in an “armed conflict” with al Qaeda and associates. The new legal theory is that the Islamic State either is al Qaeda or is (or used to be) associated with al Qaeda within the meaning of the AUMF. Thus the administration’s legal theory is that the United States is or in the near future will be in an armed conflict with the Islamic State. And “armed conflict” is the modern term for war.
Jack Goldsmith is the Learned Hand Professor at Harvard Law School, co-founder of Lawfare, and a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. Before coming to Harvard, Professor Goldsmith served as Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Counsel from 2003-2004, and Special Counsel to the Department of Defense from 2002-2003.
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