IRRC No. 900

Protecting the past for the future: How does law protect tangible and intangible cultural heritage in armed conflict?

Reading time 9 min read
Download PDF
This article is also available in

In war, individuals are vulnerable not only physically but also in terms of their cultural identity, and the obliteration of cultural heritage often becomes a central issue. This is particularly the case in armed conflicts with an ethnic, cultural or religious character. In some regions, cultural heritage consists more of monuments and objects; it is a "tangible" heritage, mostly protected by the law of armed conflict.

Download PDF

Continue reading #IRRC No. 900

All articles

Protecting the past for the future: How does law protect tangible and intangible cultural heritage in armed conflict? author: Christiane Johannot-Gradis

9 min read

The danger of “new norms” and the continuing relevance of IHL in the post-9/11 era author: Anna Di Lellio, Emanuele Castano

7 min read

Reconciling the rules of international humanitarian law with the rules of European human rights law author: Claire Landais, Léa Bass

7 min read

Factors shaping the legal implications of increasingly autonomous military systems author: Tim McFarland

10 min read

The future of warfare: Are we ready? author: Randolph Kent

15 min read

Interview with Balthasar Staehelin author: Balthasar Staehelin

2 min read

Resolutions of the 32nd International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent author:

10 min read

International humanitarian law and the challenges of contemporary armed conflicts, 2015 author:

30 min read

Book review: Military Self-Interest in Accountability for Core International Crimes author: William J. Fenrick

1 min read

Book review: Identifying the Enemy: Civilian Participation in Armed Conflict author: Ellen Policinski

1 min read

New publications in humanitarian (Autumn 2016) author:

3 min read

Go back to the first article

More about Conduct of hostilities, Cultural property, International Review of the Red Cross

article IRRC No. 923

Librarian’s Pick: Intersections in cultural heritage law author: Charlotte Mohr

13 min read
article IRRC No. 922

Who is the civilian population? Ensuring IHL is implemented for the protection of the entirety of the civilian population – including persons with disabilities author: Alice Priddy

25 min read
article IRRC No. 919

Cultural evolution: Protecting “digital cultural property” in armed conflict author: Ronald Alcala

66 min read