Today is Argentina Day here at Opinio Juris! (OK, it is Bash-Argentina Day). In any event, it is worth highlighting that while Argentina has escaped for now a NY federal court ruling that would have forced it to pay holdout creditors next month, it is also battling Ghana at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. The request...
Thanks to Ken for posting the link to Jeh Johnson’s important speech below, and bravo to Jeh Johnson for saying it aloud. In addition to the central passage Ken highlights, I might add this from Johnson’s speech (to reiterate, Johnson is General Counsel to the U.S. Department of Defense). “War” must be regarded as a finite, extraordinary and unnatural state of...
Quick note further to Deborah's post on the "end-game" of the current US counterterrorism regime. In category of great minds think about the same things, if not precisely alike, the same day Deborah posts, Defense Department General Counsel Jeh C. Johnson gives a speech at the Oxford Union, “The Conflict Against Al Qaeda and its Affiliates: How Will It End?” Ben...
If you haven’t already seen it, it’s worth taking a look at this morning’s editorial in the New York Times about the Administration’s targeted killing program. The editorial follows on a series of articles in recent weeks, including the Times’ own report that the Administration was in a scramble pre-election to codify (in some form) internal processes for deciding...
I have a Forbes.com op-ed today providing a fuller version of my critique of Argentina's legal arguments over the ARA Libertad. (It's worth noting that Argentina is actually heading toward yet another financial crisis spurred by a recent New York court decision, which I didn't have time to incorporate into this piece.) Last month, a court in Ghana detained the ARA Libertad, an Argentine...
As expected, the UN General Assembly Resolution granting non-member state status to Palestine passed on Thursday. Israel's UN ambassador has called it a "reward for terrorism". This article compares the votes of the European nations on Palestine's UNESCO membership last year, and this year's vote, and concludes that European support shifted towards the Palestinian authority. Private Bradley Manning took the stand...
I've been meaning to discuss the AP's recent claim that an obviously fraudulent graph provided to it by an unnamed country (almost certainly Israel) proves that Iran is trying to build a nuclear weapon. As is often the case, however, Glenn Greenwald beat me to it. If the AP were capable of shame, it would immediately retract the...
In the wake of today's long-overdue vote to upgrade Palestine to observer-state status, there seems to be persistent confusion concerning what would happen if Palestine ratified the Rome Statute. In particular, a number of commentators seem to think that it is unclear whether the ICC would have jurisdiction over crimes committed prior to Palestine's ratification. (See Colum Lynch at FP,...
The UNGA is expected to recognize Palestine as a "non-member" state during a vote today. Following massive protests earlier this week in Cairo, the Assembly drafting the new Egyptian Constitution has vowed to publish, and vote on, a draft today. The US is considering options to intervene more strongly in the Syrian conflict, while the EU has renewed its sanctions for another...
The Associated Press has a confusing and muddled account of the consequences of Colombia's withdrawal from the Bogota Pact (American Treaty on Pacific Settlement), which had committed Colombia to the ICJ for disputes with other signatory states. Here is where the AP account doesn't make much sense (or is flat out wrong): Legal experts, however, said [Colombian President] Santos’ announcement was unlikely,...
Still smarting from the ICJ's judgment last week awarding rights to Nicaragua over territorial waters claimed by Colombia, President Juan Manuel Santos announced that Colombia is withdrawing from the 1948 Bogota treaty granting jurisdiction to the ICJ to resolve disputes between signatories. Since Colombia was obviously the host to the treaty's creation and (until now) had made no limitations...
In Syria, rebel forces have for the first time downed a government helicopter using a surface-to-air missile they acquired during the recent capture of an army base. The EU is reviewing its sanctions on Syria, and the UK, with France's backing, is arguing for a review every three months to make it easier to arm the opposition. The head of the Palestinian...
