Posted on 01/14/2023 4:39:51 PM PST by Mariner
Russia's frequent and widespread attacks on Ukraine's power infrastructure have plunged millions of people into darkness, depriving them of heat, power and water just as winter arrives and temperatures drop below zero.
Many Ukrainian and Western leaders quickly condemned the strikes as war crimes because of the harm done to the civilian population. But attacks on energy grids have long been part of warfare - so is Russia's strategy a violation of international law?
With certain limitations, parts of a country's electrical grid can be considered legitimate targets if they are used to power military facilities.
This is true even if the targets have a civilian as well as a military purpose, so long as destroying the object would "offer a definite military advantage".
Iraq's energy infrastructure was attacked by US forces in 1991 - a strategy that has been heavily criticised. Nato forces also targeted the power grid in Serbia in 1999. In both cases, the civilian population was affected by the resulting power outages.
In fact, there may be times when neutralising a military facility by taking out its power supply is preferable to hitting the facility directly with missiles or artillery.
"Would I rather deprive part of the civilian population of electricity for a limited period, rather than risk killing civilians because of the collateral effects of using kinetic weapons? Yeah, I would think so," Michael Schmitt - professor emeritus at the US Naval War College - told the BBC.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.com ...
Even in winter.
So asks the British who fire bombed Dresden.
Always been a target in any war or conflict.
Nobody enforces “war crimes” anymore.
War Crime - sort of an oxymoron.
They do if you lose.
“Is attacking Ukraine’s power grid a war crime?”
And what’s anybody gonna do about it?
Ask the Deep State operatives targeting the US power grid.
https://www.snipershide.com/shooting/threads/more-attacks-on-the-power-grid.7151503/
https://www.businessinsider.com/silicon-valley-power-station-sniper-attack-2014-2
“They do if you lose.”
That’s why Russia will try dozens of Ukrainians before 2024 closes.
Where is the United Nations?
Was this a war crime?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/balkans/stories/belgrade052599.htm
winners don’t commit war crimes
only losers will be found to have committed them
There has been a few of the “usual suspects” here that have used the ‘that was different’ defense when NATO in the Balkans parallels have been brought up.
No
Ask the Germans who bombed London from zeppelins in WWI, and destroyed British factories, homes, cathedrals, etc. during the blitz in WW II.
War crimes = victor’s justice.
Of course it is. All war is criminal. That is the nature of war.
Sherman said you have to take the war to the people. Hitler started it first, and the allies finished it.
Deploying their peacekeepers so they can rape women and children.
The MSM is often a “war crime”
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