The Requirement of Effective Control in the Law of Occupation

This chapter focuses on the impact of control on occupation. Whether a State exercises effective control over territory of another State determines whether that territory is occupied. In other words, whether an occupation, i.e. a form of international armed conflict, exists and the law of occupation applies. If so, the State exercising effective control is an ‘Occupying Power’. This contribution first addresses the role of the notion of effective control in the law of occupation. The second part deals with a possible second function of the notion of effective control, related to the phenomenon of occupation by proxy, when territory is occupied by an entity that is not part of a State, usually an organized armed group, acting on behalf of a State.