Martial law is the imposition of military rule by military authorities over designated regions on an emergency basis—(usually) only temporary—when the civilian government or civilian authorities fail to function effectively (e.g., maintain order and security, and provide essential services), when there are extensive riots and protests, or when the disobedience of the law becomes widespread. In most cases, military forces are deployed to subdue the crowds, to secure government buildings and key or sensitive locations, and to maintain order.^[1] Generally, military personnel replace civil authorities and perform some or all of their functions. In full-scale martial law, the highest-ranking military officer would take over, or be installed, as the military governor or as head of the government, thus removing all power from the previous executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government.^[1]

Martial law can be used by governments to enforce their rule over the public. Such incidents may occur after a coup d'état (Thailand 2006); when threatened by popular protest (China, Tiananmen Square protests of 1989); to suppress political opposition (Poland in 1981); to stabilize insurrections or perceived insurrections (Canada, The October Crisis of 1970). Martial law may be declared in cases of major natural disasters, however most countries use a different legal construct, such as a "state of emergency".

Martial law has also been imposed during conflicts and in cases of occupations, where the absence of any other civil government provides for an unstable population. Examples of this form of military rule include post World War II reconstruction in Germany and Japan as well as the southern reconstruction following the U.S. Civil War.

Typically, the imposition of martial law accompanies curfews, the suspension of civil law, civil rights, habeas corpus, and the application or extension of military law or military justice to civilians. Civilians defying martial law may be subjected to military tribunal (court-martial).

By country[link]

Bahrain[link]

See: 2011 Bahraini uprising

Canada[link]

The War Measures Act was a Canadian statute that allowed the government to assume sweeping emergency powers, stopping short of martial law, i.e. the military does not administer justice, which remains in the hands of the courts. The Act has been invoked three times: During World War I, World War II, and the October Crisis of 1970. In 1988, the War Measures Act was replaced by the Emergencies Act.

Prior to 1837, martial law was proclaimed and applied in the territory of the Province of Quebec during the invasion of Canada by the army of the American Continental Congress in 1775-1776. It was also applied twice in the territory of Lower Canada during the 1837-1838 insurrections.

On December 5, following the events of November 1837, martial law was proclaimed in the district of Montréal by Governor Gosford, without the support of the Legislative Assembly in the Parliament of Lower Canada. It was imposed until April 27, 1838.

Martial law was proclaimed a second time on November 4, 1838, this time by acting Governor John Colborne, and was applied in the district of Montreal until August 24, 1839.^[2]

Egypt[link]

Martial law in Egypt: Egyptian flagged tanks man an apparent checkpoint just outside the midtown Tahrir area during the 2011 Egyptian revolution.

In Egypt, a State of Emergency has been in effect almost continuously since 1967. Following the assassination of President Anwar el-Sadat in 1981, state of emergency was declared. Egypt has been under state of emergency ever since; the Parliament has renewed the emergency laws every three years since they were imposed. The legislation was last extended in 2003 and was due to expire at the end of May 2006; plans were in place to replace it with new anti-terrorism laws, but after the Dahab bombings in April of that year, state of emergency was renewed for another two years.^[3][4] In May 2008 there was a further extension to June 2010.^[5] In May 2010, the state of emergency was further extended, albeit with a promise from the government to be applied only to 'Terrorism and Drugs' suspects. State of Emergency gives military courts the power to try civilians and allows the government to detain for renewable 45-day periods and without court orders anyone deemed to be threatening state security. Public demonstrations are banned under the legislation. On 10 Feb 2011, the ex-president of Egypt (Hosni Mubarak) promised the deletion of the relevant constitutional article that gives legitimacy to State of Emergency in an attempt to please the mass number of protesters that demanded him to resign. On 11 Feb 2011, the ex-president stepped down and the Vice President Omar Suleiman de facto introduced the country to Martial Law when transferring all civilian powers from the presidential institution to the military institution. It meant that the presidential executive powers, the parliamentary legislative powers and the judicial powers all transferred directly into the military system which may delegate powers back and forth to any civilian institution within its territory. Under Martial Law the source of power is not the people, not the parliament, not the constitution, not a Holy Text, but solely the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces. The military issued in its third announcement the "end of the State of Emergency as soon as order is restored in Egypt". Before Martial law, the Egyptian parliament under the constitution had the civilian power to declare a State of Emergency. When in Martial law, the military gained all powers of the state, including to dissolve the parliament and suspend the constitution as it did in its fifth announcement. Under Martial law, the only legal framework within the Egyptian territory is the numbered announcements from the military. These announcements could for instance order any civilian laws to come back into force. The military announcements (communiques) are the de facto only current constitution and legal framework for the Egyptian territory. It means that all affairs of the entire state are bound by the Geneva Conventions.

Iran[link]

A classic case of a full-blown martial law in recent history took place in Iran in 1978. On September 7, Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, appointed the chief of army staff, General Gholam Ali Oveisi as the military governor of the capital city, Tehran.^[6] The army divisions took position in key locations in the city. (Martial law was also declared in some other cities.) On September 8, the army opened fire on protesters, killing somewhere from 300 to 4000 (estimates vary). The day is often referred to as Black Friday. Unable to control the unrest, Shah dissolved the civil government headed by Prime Minister Jafar Sharif-Emami on November 6, and appointed General Gholam Reza Azhari as the prime minister. Azhari’s military government also failed to bring order to the country. As a last-ditch effort, as he was preparing to leave the country, Shah dissolved the military government and appointed Shapour Bakhtiar, a reformist critic of his rule, as the new prime minister on January 4, 1979. Bakhtiar’s government fell on February 11, and with it, the history of over two thousand years of monarchy in Iran came to an end.^[6]

Ireland[link]

During the Easter Rising in 1916, Lord Wimborne, a cousin of Winston Churchill and then Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, declared martial law to maintain order in the streets of Dublin. This was later extended both in duration and geographical reach to the whole of the country with the consent of the British government. Much of Ireland was declared under martial law by the British authorities during the Irish War of Independence. A large portion of Ireland was also under de facto martial law during the Irish Civil War.

Israel[link]

Military administrative government was in effect from 1949 to 1966 over some geographical areas of Israel having large Arab populations, primarily the Negev, Galilee, and the Triangle. The residents of these areas were subject to a number of controlling measures that amounted to martial law.^[7][8] Permits from the military governor had to be procurred to travel more than a given distance from a person's registered place of residence, and curfew, administrative detentions, and expulsions were common.^[7] Although the military administration was officially for geographical areas, and not people, its restrictions were seldom enforced on the Jewish residents of these areas. In the 1950s, martial law ceased to be in effect for those Arab citizens living in predominantly Jewish cities, but remained in place in all Arab localities within Israel until 1966. The West Bank is under Israeli martial law since 1967 to present, and Gaza Strip was under martial law until 2005, the Syrian Golan Heights was also under Israeli martial law, but after the Golan Heights law was passed the territory has been under Israeli civil law.^[7]

During the 2006 Lebanon war, martial law was declared by Defense Minister Amir Peretz over the north of the country. The Israel Defense Forces were granted the authority to issue instructions to civilians, and to close down offices, schools, camps and factories in cities considered under threat of attack, as well as to impose curfews on cities in the north.^[9]

Instructions of the Home Front Command are obligatory under martial law, rather than merely recommended.^[9] The order signed by Peretz was in effect for 48 hours^[9] and was extended by the Cabinet and the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee over the war's duration.^{[citation needed]}