Undergraduate Module Descriptor

LAW3206: Terrorism, Counter-terrorism and International Law

This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.

Module Aims

The aim of this module is to use research-enriched teaching to provide you with an understanding of key aspects of the international legal framework governing the acts of terrorism and their prevention. The module will examine key developments in the field of international public law and in domestic spheres of selected countries. Teaching of the material will be done in context, which means it will be discussed with reference to particular case studies or situations. The teaching method assumes active participation and engagement by all students under the guidance of the module convenor.

The module will encourage you to reflect critically on the nature, function, strengths and weaknesses of various counter-terrorism mechanisms. It will also develop your understanding of the evolution and current scope of terrorism-oriented international crimes and aspects of individual criminal justice. This will enable you to gain an appreciation of the role that international criminal justice can and should play as part of a wider response to terrorism.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
This module's assessment will evaluate your achievement of the ILOs listed here – you will see reference to these ILO numbers in the details of the assessment for this module.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to:
Module-Specific Skills	1. demonstrate a critical understanding and detailed knowledge of selected legal mechanisms that have been established to combat terrorist activities; 2. demonstrate detailed knowledge and a critical understanding of aspects of the relevant international and domestic law relating to the role that international criminal justice can and should play as part of a wider response to terrorism;
Discipline-Specific Skills	3. demonstrate detailed knowledge and understanding of a range of legal concepts, values, principles, institutions and procedures, and apply acquired legal knowledge to complex social and contextual problems; 4. demonstrate an ability to independently integrate and assess information from primary and secondary legal and social-legal sources using appropriate interpretative techniques;
Personal and Key Skills	5. prepare analytical work that relies on a wide range of relevant, independently-researched resources, engaging with these in order to develop clear lines of argument; and 6. communicate and engage in debate effectively and autonomously, in a manner appropriate to the discipline.

Module Content

Syllabus Plan

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus is likely to cover some of the following topics:

Terrorism and armed conflicts

terrorism in the context of global or regional security
nuclear, chemical and biological terrorism
spreading terror in armed conflict
foreign fighters phenomenon
terrorism as an obstacle in the delivery of humanitarian aid

International and transnational crimes and international justice

terrorism as international crime
terrorism and organised transnational crime networks (drug-trafficking, piracy, hostage taking, bombings and mass killing)
terrorist financing
international criminal justice in relation to acts of terrorism
International Special Tribunal for Lebanon
military courts- Guantanamo Bay trials- case study

Counter-terrorism and human rights

counter-terrorism legislation and democratic oversight
detention, prosecution and the right to a fair trial
torture and counter-terrorism
extraordinary renditions- case study

Terrorist and anti-terrorist strategies on the use of social media, Internet and communication technologies, and charitable or humanitarian organisations.

United Nations and international cooperation to combat terrorism

UN Office on Drugs and Crimes- Terrorism Prevention branch
Role of UN in prevention of violent terrorism
Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida sanctions regime
Responses of regional organisations to combatting terrorism

Learning and Teaching

This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:

Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	Guided independent study	Placement / study abroad
27	123	0

...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:

Category	Hours of study time	Description
Scheduled learning and teaching activities	16.5	11 x 1.5 hour interactive lectures (i.e. requiring active student participation)
Scheduled learning and teaching activities	7.5	5 x 1.5 hour seminars
Scheduled learning and teaching activities	3	Exeter Centre for International Law events
Guided independent study	60	Assigned seminar preparation and lecture readings
Guided independent study	18	Preparation of formative assessment
Guided independent study	45	Research for and writing of summative assessment

Online Resources

This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).

SHERLOC: https://sherloc.unodc.org/cld/v3/sherloc/

Legal instruments UN compilations : https://www.un.org/counterterrorism/international-legal-instruments

The International Bar Association (IBA) and the Open Society Justice Initiative high-level panel discussion marking the release of the report Terrorism and International Law: Accountability, Remedies, and Reform:

https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/voices/a-discussion-of-the-new-report-terrorism-and-international-law-accountability-remedies-and-reform?playvideo=1

Other Learning Resources

American Journal of International Law (AJIL)

European Journal of International Law (EJIL)

International and Comparative Law Quarterly (ICLQ)

Journal of International Criminal Justice (JICJ)

Leiden Journal of International Law (LJIL)

Journal of Conflict and Security Law (JCSL)

Indicative Reading List

This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.

Selected chapters from the following books accompanied by other relevant primary and secondary sources:

Ben Saul (ed.) Research Handbook on International Law and Terrorism, (2nd edition, Edward Elgar Publ., 2020)

Erica Chenoweth, Richard English, Andreas Gofas, and Stathis N. Kalyvas (Eds.) The Oxford Handbook of Terrorism (Oxford University Press, 2019)

Helen Duffy, The ‘War on Terror' and the Framework of International Law (2nd ed., Cambridge University Press, 2015)

Ana María Salinas de Frías, Katja Samuel, and Nigel White (Eds), Counter-Terrorism, International Law and Practice (Oxford University Press, 2012)