http://www.hpcr.org/policy_alabama_process.html

On January 27-29, 2003, an Informal, High-Level Expert Meeting on the Reaffirmation and Development of International Humanitarian Law was held for a small group of state and independent experts. The meeting was conceived as an opportunity to identify and address key legal challenges to IHL in contemporary conflict situations and to propose an agenda for potential further research. The event constituted an occasion to explore the possibilities of fostering a mode of informal, expert-based dialogue and to launch an action-oriented research agenda. Select issues identified at the Expert Meeting for further research were:

• Direct Participation of Civilians in Hostilities
• The Impact of High- and Low-Technology Warfare on IHL
• Suicide Attacks Against Civilians during an Armed Conflict
• Humanitarian Access to the Civilian Population
• Compliance with IHL by Non-State Actors (NSAs)

As follow-up to the Expert Meeting, a series of thematic webpages was launched on the International Humanitarian Law Research Portal. Addressing each of the five themes raised by the January 2003 meeting, as well as a sixth theme, Occupation and Peacebuilding, pages are subdivided into four sections that include a working paper written by an IHL expert, selected literature, legal materials, and related news. The thematic pages are intended to encourage to the greatest extent possible the sharing of information relative to the identified topics.