Un Legal Instruments on Terrorism Relating to Civil Aviation

Endrit Demolli 1, Islam Qerimi 2

https://doi.org/10.62271/pjc.16.4.1365.1382

Abstract

This paper focused on the UN treaties on terrorism that affect civil aviation. The authors analyze all those treaties, studying their scope, structure, and purpose in practice. The treaties have also been studied in a comparative perspective to highlight their strengths and eventual weaknesses, which have been disclosed (uncovered) by the developments in the field of aviation, during their practical application since 1963 until today. The treaties have established several criminal offenses against civil aviation, including the use of commercial aircraft as lethal weapons, then have addressed the issues of jurisdiction between states in concrete cases; extradition; mutual legal assistance between States Parties, etc. As a result, the authors are deeply convinced that the development of the Tokyo-Hague-Montreal-Beijing system, which is part of the whole international legal system of combating terrorism, is fully justified. The new treaties also make this system more coherent and sufficient in relation to preventing, combating, and suppressing unlawful acts against civil aircraft and provide a suitable ground for the development of multilateral international cooperation between state parties and the creation of an effective and uniform legal mechanism. It should be emphasized that the adoption of the Beijing Treaties is part of the implementation of the UN Global Counter-Terrorism.

Keywords:  Terrorism, terrorist attacks, hijacking, civil aviation, jurisdiction, convention, protocol.