The issue of assigning international responsibility for acts of aggression carried out through cyber attacks within the framework of international law

Sadiq, Rikan Jawhar

doi:10.63677/jqlap.2025.185016

The issue of assigning international responsibility for acts of aggression carried out through cyber attacks within the framework of international law

https://doi.org/10.63677/jqlap.2025.185016

Volume 16, Issue: 2 part 2
Autumn 2025

Pages 593-608

AL-Qadisiya Journal For Law and Political Sciences

Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Rikan Jawhar Sadiq

Master of Public Law Kurdistan Bar Association

Abstract

International legal responsibility is recognized for the crime of aggression, as it is classified as an international crime that falls within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court. The definition of aggression, as set out in Article 1 of the Definition of Aggression Resolution No. 3314 of 1974, has been incorporated into the Statute of the International Criminal Court and includes traditional forms of aggression and acts defined as criminal in Article 3 of the resolution.
This study addresses the issue of international accountability for acts of aggression carried out through cyber attacks, which is not explicitly addressed in Article Three of the aforementioned resolution. Unlike traditional acts of aggression that use physical force, cyberattacks involve the use of virtual weapons in cyberspace to target the territorial integrity and political independence of states. The research evaluates the applicability of current rules of international liability for traditional acts of aggression to the modern form of aggression represented by cyberattacks.

Keywords

international responsibility

aggression

Cyber attacks

international crime

International Criminal Court