A Case Study of Somalia. A Critical Analysis of the Elements Considered in a Conflict

Seminar paper from the year 2020 in the subject Politics - International Politics - Region: Africa, grade: A, , language: English, abstract: Armed conflicts are as old as man. This is true for Somalia which shall be discussed in detail in this paper. Understanding the nature and definition of armed conflict, dates to the Conference of the National Red Cross held in 1946, the precursor to the Geneva Conventions of 1949 that specified the essence of armed conflicts. According to one definition of armed conflict based on the Doctrine of International humanitarian law, it is 'the use of weapons as an instrument to harm persons and /or property in order to overcome the opposing party'. Arising from this doctrine is the understanding is that an armed conflict is one in which there is intervention by armed forces. Arising from this brief definition of an armed conflict, this paper, in the next section, we will examine and evaluate the elements of an armed conflict with a special focus on Somalia- a nation that has been in the throes of armed conflict for about three decades now. In the next section, an assessment of the elements of armed conflict in the Somalia civil war will be attempted.