Security, intelligence and legal experts have jointly cautioned that while Civilian Harm Mitigation and Response (CHMR/CHM) is increasingly central to modern air operations, it must not be mistaken as automatic proof of compliance with international law.
This was the consensus at a multi-paper presentation on Tuesday in Abuja at a seminar on Civilian Harm Mitigation and Response for strategic-level officers, organised by the Civil-Military Relations Branch.
Dr Larry Lewis, Dr Kabiru Adamu and Dr Livinus Jatto, in their separate presentations, examined the operational, institutional and legal dimensions of civilian harm mitigation in contemporary conflict environments.
The experts agreed that CHMR remains a strategic enabler of air power, strengthening legitimacy, intelligence flow and operational effectiveness, but stressed that its value depends on correct doctrinal, institutional and legal application.
However, Dr Livinus Jatto issued a key legal caution, warning that minimal civilian harm in an operation does not automatically mean compliance with International Humanitarian Law (IHL) or International Human Rights Law (IHRL).
“Civilian harm mitigation during an operation does not necessarily mean that an operation is in compliance with the law,” he said.
Jatto explained that International Humanitarian Law—also known as the law of armed conflict—applies strictly in situations of armed conflict, where military objectives may be lawfully targeted, even where incidental civilian harm occurs under regulated conditions.
By contrast, he said International Human Rights Law governs the use of force outside armed conflict and imposes far stricter limitations on lethal force, making any civilian death legally more consequential.
He stressed that a key operational challenge lies in correctly classifying the operating environment, noting that misclassification between armed conflict and non-conflict situations could create serious legal and operational risks.
Earlier, Dr Larry Lewis described CHMR as a product of battlefield learning from Iraq and Afghanistan, arguing that modern warfare is a “competition of learning” in which faster-adapting forces gain strategic advantage.
He said civilian harm, if not properly managed, can undermine military success, fuel insurgency and weaken legitimacy, citing operations such as Fallujah as examples where tactical gains produced long-term strategic setbacks.
Lewis noted that analysis of over 2,000 civilian harm cases revealed predictable pathways of occurrence, enabling militaries to design preventive operational measures such as tactical patience, improved targeting discipline and operational alternatives to kinetic action.
In his presentation, Dr Kabiru Adamu focused on Nigeria’s complex security environment, describing CHMR as essential in a theatre characterised by civilian–insurgent intermixing, intelligence uncertainty and air–ground coordination challenges.
He said CHMR strengthens not only operational effectiveness but also intelligence preservation and strategic communication, adding that it denies insurgents propaganda advantage while improving community trust.
However, he warned that CHMR becomes an impediment when treated as a post-incident bureaucratic exercise rather than an embedded operational doctrine.
Adamu called for institutional reforms, including dedicated civilian protection structures, improved air–ground integration, AI-enabled intelligence fusion, and structured post-strike response mechanisms.
The experts concluded that modern air operations are no longer judged solely by kinetic outcomes, but by a broader standard that includes legality, legitimacy, intelligence impact and civilian protection.
They stressed that CHMR sits at the intersection of law, operations and strategy, and must therefore be fully embedded across doctrine, planning, execution and accountability systems.
“Civilian harm mitigation is not just about reducing casualties, it is about ensuring lawful, legitimate and strategically effective air power,” the experts collectively implied.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the seminar brought together senior serving and retired military officers from across services, security and intelligence experts, as well as legal experts and media.
(NAN)
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