war is a situation or a period of fighting between countries or groups of people. a war generally involves the use of weapons, a military organization and soldiers. war is a situation in which a nation enforces its rights by using force. not every armed conflict is a war. a fight between individuals, between gangs, drug cartels, etc. is not considered a war. however, most wars are called armed conflicts. international humanitarian law is a set of rules that tries to limit the effects of wars. international humanitarian law recognizes two kinds of wars. these are: