Jihad and Just War in the War on Terror

Supervised by James Piscatori, Alia Brahimi has recently published this highly scientific study – 116 pages of critical apparatus! – as part of the Oxford Leverhulme Trust Program on the Changing Character of War. The author, a philosophy graduate (Edinburgh/Oxford), is specialized on al-Qa[ida, the Taliban, and Ghaddafi. This prepared her well for a detailed comparison of the Just War Theory of George W. Bush Jr. ‘War on Terror’ and Osama Bin Laden’s corresponding, equally innovative Jihadism, exceeding strictly limited, justified warfare (proper jihad).

The author sets off both approaches against the traditional international law concepts of ius ad bellum (the right to enter war) and ius in bello (the rules of war), not understood by her as reified but as in flux.

Richly embedded in universal history, the learned author analyses each side’s record in view of their common assumption that war can be fought legitimately only (i) as a last resort (ultima ratio); (ii) in defence; (iii) under legitimate authority; (iv) if proportionate: causing more good than evil; (v) with discrimination against combatants only; (vi) with reasonable hope of success.

Only under these limits defence may be taken up, or pre-emptively against imminent attack.