“The legitimacy of using force against Pirates off the coast of Somalia; emphasis on the necessity of observing international human rights considerations

Piracy and armed robbery against ships at seas off the coast of Somalia, the Hornof Africa, Gulf of Aden and recently the Gulf of Guinea in West Africa have been at the forefront of the attention paid by the international community and specifically the United Nations Security Council to the serious crisis posed against international trade, security and safety of maritime navigation. In this regard, UNSC resolutions have already expanded the narrower scope of international law on piracy so that the international community tempted to fight against piracy and armed robbery against ships at sea extensively by applying all necessary instruments. However, such measures of using of force according to the UNSC resolutions should be carried out based on the international human rights law and international humanitarian law to be considered legitimate. Furthermore, in these resolutions, UNSC urges all States and international organizations involved in fighting against piracy to establish an international cooperation mechanism as a common point of contact for counter-piracy activities near Somalia, and to enhance the judicial capacity of regional states to combat piracy, including the judicial capacity to prosecute pirates. This article aims to investigate about the legitimacy of using force against pirates off the coast of Somalia and the Gulf of Aden, firstly based on an inquiry about the international human rights law considerations (in particular guarantees to a fair trial, prohibition of torture and inhuman and cruel treatment during the exercise of jurisdiction over pirates) and secondly a study on the practice of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and the International Tribunal for the Law Of the Sea (ITLOS).