الحرب السيبرانية في ضوء أحكام القانون الدولي العام

Abstract

 The methods and tools of wars have developed greatly throughout history, and this was accompanied by a development similar to the international legal rules established by countries to prevent the outbreak of wars and conflicts, or to limit and avoid many of their dire effects on humanity if they were unable to prevent their occurrence. For a long time, the rules of international law have ended and established the prohibition and criminalization of states’ resort to waging wars, and obligated them to follow a peaceful approach to resolving their disputes, and even in those cases in which the provisions of international law permitted the use of force, this use was controlled by explaining its justifications and limits. It was also able, upon the occurrence of armed conflicts, to establish frameworks to govern them and ensure a degree of humanitarian protection for their victims, which is included in the branch of international law called international humanitarian law. The tremendous scientific and technological progress has enabled the development of war and military capabilities in a manner that allowed the development of new methods and spaces, for which the military use of cyberspace is a model. The use of cyber operations during armed conflict has become a feature of many contemporary conflicts. This calls for the necessity of adapting the rules of international law to suit contemporary international conditions, and to be able to include modern concepts and advanced means of war. Accordingly, this paper deals with cyber war in light of the rules of international law to search for a legal framework that enables us to clarify the position of international law on this type of war by analyzing many texts to elicit rulings. Our research will include three axes. The first is devoted to clarifying the concept of cyber war to distinguish it from conventional war and to mention its forms and effects. The second axis discusses the extent to which cyber warfare is subject to the rules of international law regulating military operations. The third axis is devoted to explaining the national measures taken by each individual country, and the international measures in which countries cooperate to confront the cyber war.

 Keywords: cyber warfare. Regulating military operations. Mechanisms to enhance the capabilities of countries to prevent and deter cyber threats.