A/HRC/42/CRP.1 (b) During the course of the conflict: a party that has suffered violations of international humanitarian law can appeal to the international community to take whatever measures it can to put a stop to the violations. On occasion this has been effective, although it may take some time.1389 (c) After the event: It is clear that a State bears responsibility for violations of international humanitarian law attributable to it.1390This includes a requirement to make full reparation for the loss or injury caused.1391 While logic would also suggest that armed opposition groups bear responsibility for violations of international humanitarian law carried out by their members, it is less clear what the implications of such responsibility are.1392 Serious violations of international humanitarian law constitute war crimes.1393 Individuals are criminally responsible for war crimes they commit.1394 860. Parties to an armed conflict are required to take the steps necessary to prevent, put a stop to and punish the commission of violations of international humanitarian law. This includes an obligation to investigate war crimes allegedly committed by their armed forces or on their territory and, if appropriate to prosecute the suspects. 1395 861. While progress has been made in the operationalization of these obligations,1396 there remain significant areas where the content of the obligation still needs to be clarified. For example, the obligation to suppress violations of international humanitarian law requires the conduct of an investigation. It is not clear whether the requirement is triggered by an incident in which it is first necessary to determine whether a war crime has been committed, or whether it is only triggered by something already characterized as a war crime. It is submitted that logically the first has to be the correct view. Another issue requiring clarification is what constitutes an “investigation” for the purposes of satisfying the requirement. Clearly, it is necessary to take into account the context in which any investigation may need to be conducted. In particular, it needs to be established how closely the international humanitarian law definition of an investigation is related to the definition in human rights law.1397 862. It will be noted that this formulation requires a State on whose territory possible war crimes were committed to investigate the incidents, including presumably where the incidents were committed by members of a non-State armed group.1398 863. If in fact an investigation is, in the circumstances, required, the party to the conflict will usually have to consider three issues: (a) What has been done to determine whether it violated the law (b) Was the law in fact violated (c) Has any corrective action revealed to be necessary been taken 864. There are a number of specific pitfalls that can occur when investigating violations of international humanitarian law. The first is the reaching of premature legal conclusions, without the necessary evidence being available. Where, for example, a house is destroyed, killing fifteen people sheltering inside, it is not possible to determine whether a breach of 1389 See ibid. rule 144, second sentence, and commentary thereto. Ibid, rule 149. 1391 Ibid, rule 150. 1392 Ibid, commentary to rule 149. 1393 Ibid, rule 156. 1394 Ibid, rule 151. 1395 Ibid, rule 158. 1396 For example, legal advice must be available at the appropriate level of command and members of armed forces must be instructed in what behaviour is required and what prohibited; ibid rules 141 & 142. 1397 The question of the applicability of the obligation to investigate under human rights law to military operations carried out during belligerent occupation was before the House of Lords in Al Skeini & others v. Secretary of State for Defence, [2007] HL 26, judgment of 13 June 2007. 1398 This is the role of the National Commission of Inquiry established in Yemen. 1390 206