A/HRC/13/42* page 25 50. As the disappearance of persons is inseparably linked to treatment that amounts to a violation of article 7 of the Covenant, according to the jurisprudence of the Human Rights Committee,52 the prohibition against enforced disappearance must not be derogated from, either. Similarly, article 1, paragraph 2, of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance stipulates: No exceptional circumstances whatsoever, whether a state of war or a threat of war, internal political instability or any other public emergency, may be invoked as a justification for enforced disappearance. 51. Even if one were (wrongfully)53 to classify the global struggle against international terrorism in its entirety as a “war” for the purpose of applying the Third and Fourth Geneva Conventions, international human rights law continues to apply: the Covenant applies also in situations of armed conflict to which the rules of international humanitarian law are applicable. While, in respect of certain Covenant rights, more specific rules of international humanitarian law may be especially relevant for the purposes of the interpretation of those rights, both spheres of law are complementary, not mutually exclusive.54 52. In its advisory opinion on the Legality of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons, the International Court of Justice clearly affirmed the applicability of the Covenant during armed conflicts, stating that “the right not arbitrarily to be deprived of one’s life applies also in hostilities. The test of what constitutes an arbitrary deprivation of life, however, then must be determined by the applicable lex specialis, namely, the law applicable in armed conflict.”55 The 52 Human Rights Committee, Mojica v. Dominican Republic (449/1991), and Celis Laureano v. Peru (540/1993), para. 8.5. See also European Court of Human Rights, Kurt v. Turkey, judgement of 25 May 1998, para. 122 et seq. 53 Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, opinions No. 2/2009 and 3/2009 (A/HRC/13/30/Add.1). See also E/CN.4/2003/8, paras. 64 et seq.; the report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, mission to the United States of America (A/HRC/6/17/Add.3), paras. 6-9; the report on the situation of detainees at Guantánamo Bay of the Chairperson-Rapporteur of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief and the Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health (E/CN.4/2006/120), para. 21, and the official statement of ICRC dated 21 July 2005 on the relevance of international humanitarian law in the context of terrorism, available from the ICRC website /(www.icrc.org). 54 Human Rights Committee, general comment No. 31 (CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.13), para. 11. See also Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, opinions No. 44/2005 (A/HRC/4/40/Add.1), para. 13, No. 2/2009 and 3/2009 (A/HRC/13/30/Add.1), paras. 27 and 30. 55 I.C.J. Reports 1996, p. 240 (8 July 1996), para. 25. See also Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, opinion No. 44/2005 (A/HRC/4/40/Add.1), para. 13, in which the Working Group