EVALUATION OF UCAV OPERATIONS IN TERMS OF RULE OF LAW AND INTERNATIONAL LAW: THE CASE OF THE ASSASSINATION OF IRANIAN GENERAL QASEM SOLEIMANI

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EVALUATION OF UCAV OPERATIONS IN TERMS OF RULE OF LAW AND INTERNATIONAL LAW: THE CASE OF THE ASSASSINATION OF IRANIAN GENERAL QASEM SOLEIMANI

In recent years, with the gradual development of technology and progress in the defense industry, the security forces of many states have acquired unmanned aerial vehicles called UCAV’s. The use of UCAV technology has become even more preferred by states due to its various advantages such as minimizing personnel losses, reducing risk factors in counter-terrorism activities and cross-border operations, and quickly neutralizing targeted threats. UCAV technology, which is thought to reduce the risks in internal and external security operations and reach the determined targets effectively and efficiently, also brings various difficulties and risks. To calm the increasing unrest in their own public opinion after the human losses on the ground, some countries, notably the USA, preferred to carry out UCAV strikes instead of putting their own soldiers at risk in the operations they carried out in foreign countries, especially within the context of the “War on Terror” doctrine developed after the September 11 attacks. However, very few officials have information about the UCAV attacks so far due to reasons such as confidentiality, intelligence information, and national security. The fact that democratic institutions, parliaments, and the judiciary in the relevant countries cannot control and monitor UCAV operations raises questions about the legality of these operations. In this study, UCAV operations are evaluated in terms of the rule of law and international law, and the assassination of Qasem Soleimani, the Commander of the Quds Forces responsible for foreign operations of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, through a UCAV strike by the USA on January 3, 2020, is examined as a case study. In this research, it was concluded that Qassem Soleimani was assassinated in violation of international law.

Keywords: UCAV Operations, International Law, USA, Iran, Qasem Soleimani.

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The language of the article Turkish
The type of the article Research paper
The field of the article International Relations and Political Science
Author
Published issue 1. Issue
Page 42-72

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How can this article be cited?

  • Tuna, F. (2022). SİHA operasyonlarının hukuk devleti ve uluslararası hukuk açısından değerlendirilmesi: İranlı General Kasım Süleymani suikasti örneği. Türkiye İran Araştırmaları Dergisi, 1(1). 42-72.
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