It would depend on whether he can be classified as a mercenary, in which case he can be prosecuted on his return.
I doubt it however as he has dual nationality.
UK student joins rebel forces in Libya, to be honest with you.
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It would depend on whether he can be classified as a mercenary, in which case he can be prosecuted on his return.
I doubt it however as he has dual nationality.
That and the fact that a mercenary is salaried or privately hired?
It probably was. I'm not very good at fighting to be honest with you.
Well hopefully by the time he returns the rebels will be recognised as the legitimate govt of Libya and so he'll have just been serving in another 'army' perhaps...
I wasn't aware we had much in the way of anti-mercinary legislation (I know south africa has) - and even if we have then it doesn't seem to be used much even high profile cases like Simon Mann, Tim Spicer etc... don't seem to bother the UK authorities - in fact Tim Spicer has done rather well out of Iraq despite his previous activities with Sandline.
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why did have to leave?! he should have been in the student protests with that flak jacket and ak47 
Not always salaried or privately hired, simply fighting for material gain is enough.
The Geneva Convention protocols within the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts laws.
Also we have a piece of legislation called the Foreign Enlistment Act which can apply.
I don't think it does here anyway, just pointing out that he could get in trouble depending on his circumstances in reply to Strife's post.
To be honest it's basically cheaper than being a student.
Wasnt aware that british nationals could be prosecuted for serving in a conflict in another nation. Considering that a sizeable number of british, (along with other westerners) served in various factions during the conflict in the former yugoslavia?
why did have to leave?! he should have been in the student protests with that flak jacket and ak47
Fire extinguishers and chairs are their weapons of choice.
No, no and yes.
To be honest with you though, I'd basically try and get some better equipment if I did.
They likely can't in reality - few bits of legislation have already been mentioned but realistically - chances of being prosecuted simply for fighting in a war are very remote otherwise various brits who fought franco in the spanish civil war or signed up for the french foreign legion, fought in numerous african wars or as you pointed out, fought in the balkans would have already been prosecuted.
Unless you're volunteering for a terrorist organisation or are joining forces with a group we're not so friendly with then it seems you'll generally be OK as far as risk of prosecution here is concerned.
Quite, but the laws are there. Whether they are enforced or applicable depends on a lot of variables and is extremely complex.
Basically for British Nationals, you can't fight in the army of or for a foreign nation or faction if that nation or faction is fighting against someone we are at peace with.
Mercenaries come under article codes APGC77 Art 47.e and APGC77 Art 47.f. of the GC which again is pretty complex.
The basics are here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Mercenary_Convention
Yeah seems to be a complex area - the UK itself doesn't have much except the Foreign Enlistment Act you mentioned earlier which seems to have stemmed from former UK soldiers and officers fighting against Spain in South America. The act, though it still exists, has apparently never been successfully enforced.
Thanks for the link Castiel, i remember reading a book some years ago. Someone elses war iirc, mainly dealt with mercs operating in africa, ie Mad mike hoare and 5th commando in the congo, the war in rhodesia, south africa, and a few accounts of ex british troops in colombia, with the exception of the south africa and rhodesia volunteers, who seemed to be fighting out of ideological reasons. The guys operating in colombia and the congo were there for purely financial gain.
Quite, there was some action against British nationals fighting in Angola but that fell apart, probably due to a quiet word from SA.
However, mercenaries can be indicted under international law, not that itvis applicable here of course.
Yeah, there was efforts to take action against those operating in sub-Saharan Africa, but nothing came of it, like I said in another post, likely due to pressure from SA etc.
The problem is that there are so many loopholes, especially regarding fighting for a commonwealth country that the laws are almost useless.