The children (and wives) of foreign ISIS fighters
91
Government has showed no interest towards the fate of foreigners on its
soil − the role of States of nationality gains more prominence. In
particular, with regard to this scenario, it is worth reflecting on the
extraterritorial reach of human rights treaties like the European
Convention on Human Rights (ECHR),110 the ICCPR, the Convention
against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or
Punishment (CAT),111 the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)
and its Optional Protocols,112 in particular the Optional Protocol to the
Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in
Armed Conflict (OPAC).113
So far the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), in its seemingly inconsistent case law from Banković onwards,114 confirmed that jurisdiction under Article 1 of the ECHR is ‘primarily territorial’115 and it
also recognized ‘a number of exceptional circumstances’ outside of territorial boundaries, which could give rise to the establishment of jurisdiction.116 Said exceptional circumstances can be grouped in two categories,
‘state agent authority and control over persons’ and ‘effective control
over an area or territory’.117 Even though the ECtHR jurisprudence regarding jurisdiction, and thus extraterritoriality, is primarily based ‘on
facts rather than on a generalizable principle’,118 it is possible to anticipate
that − given the Court’s approach − it would be impossible, or at least
very difficult, for the Court to find that any of its States parties is currently
110
Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms as
amended.
111
CAT (adopted 10 December 1984, entered into force 26 June 1987) 1465 UNTS
85.
112
CRC Convention on the Rights of the Child (adopted 20 November 1989, entered
into force 2 September 1990) 1577 UNTS 3.
113
OPAC (adopted 25 May 2000, entered into force 12 February 2002) 2173 UNTS
222.
114
Banković v Belgium, App No 52207/99, (ECtHR [GC], 12 December 2001) paras
31-53.
115
S Miller, ‘Revisiting Extraterritorial Jurisdiction: A Territorial Justification for Extraterritorial Jurisdiction under the European Convention’ (2010) 20 Eur J Intl L 1223,
1226-1230.
116
Kim (n 103) 53.
117
Al-Skeini and Others v United Kingdom, App No 55721/07 (ECtHR [GC] 7 July
2011) paras 133-140.
118
M O’Boyle, ‘The European Convention on Human Rights and Extraterritorial
Jurisdiction: A Comment on “Life after Bankovic”’, in F Coomans, MT Kamminga (eds),
Extraterritorial Application of Human Rights Treaties (2004) 128.