The writing of this thesis meets the obvious need for a general work on the law of armed conflict from its theoretical origins to the most recent political and legal developments. The title expresses one of the basic purposes of International Humanitarian Law, which is to provide, amid generalized barity of war, protection to civilians and those no longer taking part in the fighting, and even restrictions on the violent conduct between the combatants. Resistance movements in occupied territories have been accepted as a concept since WWII. However, the exact characteristics of these movements, ...