The protection of national parks during wartime is often overlooked. In this blog, Jérôme de Hemptinne explains that although the law of armed conflict provides some protection to these areas, it is limited and often weakened by military considerations; he argues that international environmental law can reinforce this framework by guiding interpretation and maintaining conservation obligations during conflict, while highlighting ongoing uncertainties about military use of parks, extraterritorial responsibilities, the role of non-State actors, and the vulnerable legal status of park rangers.

The author would like to warmly thank Alessandra Spadaro and Dionysios Pelekis for kindly reviewing this text and for providing many valuable suggestions. Any remaining errors are the author’s.

Jérôme de Hemptinne is Assistant Professor of International Law, at Utrecht University Law School.

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