Swiss Chair of International Humanitarian Law

Dr. Nils Melzer

Dr. Nils Melzer has served for 12 years with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), first as a Protection Delegate and Deputy Head of Delegation in the Balkans and the Middle East, and subsequently as an Operational Legal Adviser and Thematic Legal Expert based at the ICRC’s headquarters in Geneva. As a Legal Adviser, he was responsible for major thematic files such as targeting and the use of force in military, police, and counter-terrorism operations, the regulation of private military and security companies, and the use of cyber operations as a means of conflict. He also conducted the ICRC’s multiannual high-level expert process aiming to clarify international humanitarian law relating to civilian participation in hostilities.

In 2011, Dr. Melzer left the ICRC to become the Research Director of the Competence Centre for Human Rights at the University of Zürich. In the same year, he was appointed the Swiss Chair of International Humanitarian Law at the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights. He also serves as a member of the Transitional Steering Committee for the International Code of Conduct for Private Security Service Providers, and of the expert group for the drafting of a “Manual on International Law in Cyber Conflict” sponsored by NATO’s Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence.

Dr. Melzer holds a Doctorate degree in law of the University of Zürich (summa cum laude) and has authored award-winning and widely translated works including his book "Targeted Killing in International Law" (Oxford University Press, 2008; Guggenheim Prize 2009), the ICRC's "Interpretive Guidance on the Notion of Direct Participation in Hostilities" (ICRC, 2009) and, together with Dr. Hans-Peter Gasser, "Humanitäres Völkerrecht - Eine Einführung" (2nd ed., Schulthess, 2012). A sought after expert and speaker at academic and military conferences around the world, Dr. Melzer also lectures at the University of Zürich and the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights.

Dr. Melzer is married and lives with his wife and daughter in Zürich, Switzerland.