The Italian Yearbook of International Law aims at making accessible to the English speaking public the Italian contribution to the practice and literature of international law. Volume XVI (2006) is organised in three main sections. The first contains doctrinal contributions including articles on the 2006 conflict in Lebanon, on the historical contribution of Francisco Suárez to the concept of international community, and on recent developments in the field of international environmental law. This section includes also shorter notes on current developments in the field of minority protection, State immunity in relation to Argentine bonds claims, as well as the surveys of the practice of ICJ, ITLOS, ILC, WTO and the European Court of Human Rights. The second section covers the Italian practice in the areas of i) judicial decisions; ii) diplomatic and parliamentary practice; iii) treaty practice; and iv) national legislation. The third section contains a systematic bibliographical index of Italian literature in the field of international law and reviews of recent books. The volume ends with an analytical index for ready consultation that includes the main judicial cases and legal instruments cited throughout the Yearbook .