The Right to Life and the Jus ad Bellum: Belligerent Equality and the Duty to Prosecute Acts of Aggression

General Comment 36 of the Human Rights Committee, adopted in 2018, proposes that ‘States parties engaged acts aggression as defined international law, resulting deprivation life, violate ipso facto article 6 Covenant.’ One question about this claim is whether it reduces incentives for compliance with humanitarian law states and their agents – provided through principles belligerent equality combatant immunity. We argue does not do so such a worry reason to reject 36. In process, we also show that, if accepted, interesting another way: entails, effect, duty on prosecute insofar they entail killing, often will. This itself doctrinally innovative. As who be prosecuted, political military leadership state. It decision wage war unlawfully renders killings arbitrary.