Master's thesis examines the question of the permissibility of the use of force against terrorist threats under international law. Its starting point are Paragraph 4 of Article 2 of the United Nations Charter and its exception – the right of self-defence under Article 51 of the United Nations Charter, with particular attention devoted to the question of how early may a state lawfully act when an armed attack has not yet occurred. In this context, the concept of an armed attack and its relationship to terrorist acts are examined. The fundamental conditions for the lawful exercise of self-defence and their significance in responding to terrorist threats are then analysed. The central part of the thesis focuses on the distinction between anticipatory, pre-emptive and preventive self-defence and the question of their permissibility under international law. Particular attention is also given to the criterion of imminence and the accumulation of events doctrine, while cyber threats and their relationship to the analysis of state practice are also addressed, including state's responses following the terrorist attacks on 11 September 2001. The analysis demonstrates that contemporary terrorist threats raise important questions concerning the temporal and substantive limits of self-defence, while necessity and proportionality remain key constraints on the use of force.
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