Rules of War?

It saddens me to think how good some people have it in this world and how bad others have it. Religion, history and the geo-political landscape have left many places miserably equipped to enjoy any sense of a 'quality life'.

In Afghanistan, a country ravaged by years of invasion, instability and factionalzied in-fighting, people are seeking out any semblance of normalcy in the post-Taliban, post-al Qaeda, post-US (read: they are ALL still there) hell they are living in. In the PakTribune, it is reported that, in order to establish control and an environment of fear, insurgents are targeting teachers and school children and schools in general. As a result, over 200 schools in the southern region of the country have been closed.

It is infuriating to try to comprehend what lengths people will go to to assert their power. But then, they probably don't feel like they have much choice, considering their history. I have always been one to question the concept of the 'rules of war'. I thought, each side has guns, each sides wants to win, each side will fight to the death, where the hell do rules come into play??? After reading these types of accounts and because of my courses this term, I have been made more aware of their frequency; it is the extremely weak and vulnerable populations that I feel the saddest for. This reality is causing me to rethink the concept of the rules of war. My position is that the international society, via NGO's or regional organizations (EU, NATO) need to seek out and establish some rules or norms protect these innocent lives.