Armed conflict is one of the most urgent global issues, causing widespread suffering for millions of people worldwide. Its genesis is rooted in a multiplicity of political, economic, and social factors, including ethnic and religious tensions, power struggles, governance issues, exploitation of natural resources, and more. These tensions, exacerbated by identity-based grievances, often precipitate violent clashes between societal groups.
The economic burden of armed conflicts goes beyond immediate combatants and extends to local communities and the world economy. Its impact is manifested in the destruction of infrastructure, in the loss of valuable human resources and the disruption of supply chains that support a nation’s economic expansion and development. It also imposes significant psychological trauma and long-term health costs on civilians.
While it is easy to attribute wars to primordial ethnic passions, this view obscures the real causes and diverts attention from the need to identify more effective ways of reducing the likelihood of armed conflict. This should start with international structures learning to disengage from local wars and provide alternative non-violent means of conflict resolution.
In order to be classified as an armed conflict, it must involve organised armed forces in direct confrontation with each other, not just sporadic attacks between criminal gangs or banditry. The ICRC’s 2024 Opinion Paper describes how the ICRC classifies contemporary armed conflict in order to take these factors into account. It aims to overcome the limitations of the legal criteria currently used, which rely on formal appearances rather than on how a conflict actually develops.
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