• In response to an escalating tensions on the Korean Peninsula, the US has deployed a warship to the region to shield against any ballistic missile attacks against South Korea. South Korea’s President has ordered the military to respond strongly and immediately to any attack. North Korea has meanwhile pledged to restart the reactors at its biggest nuclear plant. EJIL: Talk! asks the pertinent question: Are the two Koreas now at war? 
• The International Committee of the Red Cross has reported that it is “deplorable” that people are getting accustomed to the daily number of civilian casualties in Syria.
• Al Jazeera has an exclusive about the UN’s plans should the Syrian regime fall–a plan that includes deploying peacekeeping forces, a move beyond its normal role as no others in the international community are interested in getting involved.
• The mood in the Malian city of Timbuktu is tense in the wake of deadly clashes between rebel and Malian forces over the weekend.
• Relatives of approximately 90 Yeminis held at the US Guantanamo Bay prison are protesting their “very poor” conditions at Gitmo and demanding their release.
• Arms Control Blog points to a new report about the effectiveness of sanctions against Iran.
• The UNGA is set to vote today on the Arms Trade Treaty, a week after Iran, Syria and North Korea blocked the adoption by consensus.
• Following the return of the two Italian marines to India, India’s Supreme Court has removed the order barring the Italian envoy from leaving the country.

• Kenya’s Supreme Court has upheld Uhuru Kenyatta’s election as president. Although there were some riots over the weekend and five were killed, the situation in Kenya is described as calm but tense.
• North Korea has described its nuclear weapons program as the nation’s life, and has vowed to continue it despite the international sanctions.
• South Korea, meanwhile, has vowed a swift response to any provocation by the North and the US has deployed more radar-evading fighter jets.
• French-supported Malian forces are fighting Tuareg rebels in the north of Mali after an assault on Timbuktu city.
• An unintended consequence of the Iran sanctions is a boom in diesel smuggling from Pakistan, some of it carried in Pepsi bottles by child smugglers and other diesel coming over in barrels strapped to the backs of mules.
• Major depositors in Cyprus’s biggest bank will lose around 60 percent of savings over €100,000, a plan made clear by the central bank over the weekend.
• Over at Arms Control Blog, there is a post on former UK Foreign Minister Jack Straw’s recent declaration and international legal analysis that war is not an option with regard to Iran.
• For those looking for another online legal research tool, today Google unveiled Google Nose, allowing you to search by scent (editor’s note: Happy April Fool’s Day!)

Upcoming Events

• On April 2, a book launch co-sponsored by the ICRC and hosted by Georgetown Law’s National Security Law Society will take place along with a discussion on the Relevance of International Humanitarian Law in the United States after the end of hostilities at Georgetown Law School. More information can be found here.
• The Forum for Economists International holds its next conference May 31–June 3, 2013, in Amsterdam. The submission and registration deadline for presenters is April 15, 2013. However, you may contact the organizers for late submissions.”Papers in all areas of economics – including finance, political sciences, transition economics, law & economics, management, natural resources, monetary issues, Asian economies, European Union, marketing, etc. – and in areas of related disciplines are eligible for presentation.”
• On March 29, 2013, Columbia Law School hosts the ASIL/NPIG-ASCL/YCC International and Comparative Junior Scholar Workshop.

Calls for Papers

• The Australian Human Rights Centre, Faculty of Law, University of New South Wales, in cooperation with the Fondazione Lelio e Lisli Basso ISSOCO, invites submissions for the Expert Seminar on Peoples’ Tribunals and International Law. The seminar will be held Sept. 27-28, 2013, in Rome. The deadline for has been extended to March 31, 2013. 
  
• The First RMLNLU International Legal Essay Competition 2013 has been announced. The theme for this year’s competition is the law of outer space. The submission deadline is April 8, 2013.

Announcements

• The Italian Society of International Law (SIDI-ISIL) has launched a new blog devoted to International Law and EU Law: SIDIBlog. From the description: “SIDIblog is a space for discussion and debate over current issues of Private International Law, Public International Law and European Union Law. All scholars and practicing lawyers having an interest in these topics are invited to participate through posts and comments. Posts are brief pieces (maximum 1500 words) that may discuss a relevant topic, present an innovative idea, or comment upon recent developments. They may be sent to the following e-mail address: sidiblog2013 [at] gmail.com.”

Last week’s post can be found here. If you would like to post an announcement on Opinio Juris, please contact us.

• North Korea has put its rocket units on standby aimed at the US air force bases in South Korea and the Pacific after the US flew two nuclear stealth bombers over the Korean Peninsula yesterday. 
• Iran, North Korea and Syria have blocked the adoption of the UN Arms Trade Treaty, though the expectation is that with the text of the treaty in a General Assembly resolution, it would pass overwhelmingly.
• The UN Security Council has passed the first-ever “offensive” UN peacekeeping brigade to be dispatched in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, operating under orders to “neutralize” and “disarm” rebel groups they encounter.
• Thirty-one men being held at Guantanamo Bay prison have told the ICRC that they are being denied access to drinking water by their jailers.
• Human Rights Watch has called on Sri Lanka to investigate allegations of war crimes beginning with the investigation of the country’s own Minister of Resettlement, Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan, alleged to be a former leader of the Tamil Tigers (LTTE).
• Human Rights Watch has also published Hostages of the Gatekeepers, a report on abuses against internally displaced persons in Mogadishu, Somalia.
• EJIL: Talk! has an analysis of the recent news that Mathieu Ngudjolo Chui, acquitted in December 2012 by the ICC, has applied for political asylum in the Netherlands citing that he fears persecution were he to be returned to his native Congo.

• Thailand has started peace negotiations with the Muslim separatists in its southern provinces.
• UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon has argued that Mali needs an 11,000-strong peacekeeping force and a parallel force for combat and counter-terrorism operations.
• Bush v. Gore in Africa? Kenya’s Supreme Court has started hearing evidence to resolve the disputed presidential elections earlier this month.
• Theresa May, the UK’s Home Secretary, has lost the appeal against a decision that prevented the deportation of Abu Qatada to Jordan.
• The ICTY has sentenced Mićo Stanišić and Stojan Župljanin, two high level officials in Bosnian Serb structures, to 22 years’ imprisonment for crimes against humanity and war crimes (ICTY press release here).
• North Korea has cut off a military hotline with South Korea, breaking the last communication line between the two countries amid heightened tensions; in response, the US has deployed two nuclear-capable stealth bombers above South Korea as part of a “deterrence” mission.
• The biggest cyber attack in history of the internet has been taking place since mid-March against the British-Swiss anti-spam watchdog group Spamhaus.
• Though the BRICS nations have agreed in principle on a joint infrastructure fund, there need to be more discussions to hammer out the finalities of the plan for the new bank.
• The Syrian opposition has opened its first embassy in Qatar, but still voices frustration at the lack of international cooperation.

• At the Arab League summit yesterday, a member of the opposition to Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad took his vacant seat, a move that was met with applause from Arab heads of state. 
• The BRICS have reached a deal approving a development bank that would rival Western-backed financial institutions.
• In his first appearance before the ICC yesterday, Congolese suspect Bosco Ntaganda has denied the charges against him of 10 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including murder, rape, pillage, using child soldiers and other crimes, though he will not need to enter his plea until his confirmation of charges hearing begins in September (ICC press release). A video of the proceedings from yesterday can be found here.
• Vietnam alleges that China fired flares at a Vietnamese fishing boat in the South China Sea last week; China disputes any reports of damage to the ship and considers its actions appropriate and reasonable.
• Italy’s Foreign Minister has resigned to protest his government’s decision to send two Italian marines back to India to stand trial over the killing Indian fishermen they mistook for pirates while protecting the Enrica Lexie.
• Croatia will become the 28th member of the EU on July 1, the second former Yugoslav republic to join after Slovenia in 2004.
• UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon has recommended to the Security Council that the forces currently in Mali be converted into a UN peacekeeping operation and a separate force should be trained to confront Islamist threats in the area.
• Secretary Ban also urged members to ratify the Arms Trade Treaty.
• Over at Geographical Imaginations is a post about the Out of Sight, Out of Mind graphic on drone strikes in Pakistan since 2004 we mentioned yesterday.
• In other drone news, Quartz reports that they’re not just for the Taliban anymore: drones are now going to be used to protect endagered species of rhinoceros in India, a move becoming more common tool to help reserve administrators keep their eyes on their animals.

• Following last week’s apology, Israel and Turkey have started negotiations on compensation to the families of the victims of Israel’s botched raid on the Mavi Marmara in 2010.
• During their annual summit, starting in Durban today, the leaders of the BRICS are set to approve the establishment of a new development bank and currency fund to compete with the World Bank and the IMF.
• Russian officials have raided Amnesty International’s Russian headquarters in Moscow under new regulations that impose tighter controls on NGOs.
• Following international criticism of the coup, the leader of the rebels in the Central African Republic has vowed to announce a power-sharing government as soon as possible. This comes after he suspended the constitution and pledged to dissolve parliament.
• UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon has urged restoration of constitutional order in the CAR as swiftly as possible.
• An Egyptian prosecutor has ordered the arrest of five activists accused of inciting violence against the Muslim Brotherhood.
• Jordan has closed its main border crossing with Syria after two days of fighting between rebel forces and Syrian troops.
• North Korea has threatened to strike the US and has put rocket units prepared to launch at Hawaii, Guam and the mainland on “combat-ready” status.
• Bosco Ntaganda will make his first appearance today before the ICC (ICC press release here).
• The Kenyan Supreme Court has ordered a recount of the votes in 22 out of 291 precincts amid claims of fraud during the March 4th presidential election; Uhuru Kenyatta–also sought by the ICC–won the election with 50.7% of the vote.
• Over at the Arms Control Blog, there is a post analyzing the Stuxnet virus as an “act of force” against Iran.
• An interactive graph of every known US drone strike since 2004, pulled from data from the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, can be found here.

• The EU has approved a new bailout for Cyprus.
• The leader of Syria’s opposition has resigned. The Syrian crisis has also triggered a political crisis in neighboring Lebanon, as this article in the FT explains.
• The UN has reported that at least 35 have been killed over the weekend in Lubumbashi in southeast Congo when militia attacked the city before surrendering to UN troops.
• Violence in Mali continues as the army battles Islamist rebels in Goa.
• The United States will transfer custody of the Bagram prison in Kabul to Afghan authorities later today.
• The leader of the Seleka rebel group in the Central African Republic has declared himself president over the weekend, a move condemned by the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon.
• Afghanistan’s Hamid Karzai is headed to Qatar today to discuss peace prospects with the Taliban.
• Human Rights Watch has called on Pakistan to hold former military ruler Pervez Musharraf accountable for human rights abuses carried out under his regime. Musharraf has been in a self-imposed exile in London and Dubai for five years and plans to return to Pakistan to run for political office. The Pakistani Taliban have said if he does return, they will send a “death squad” to kill him.
• Bosco Ntaganda has been transferred from the US Embassy in Rwanda to the ICC holding facility in the Netherlands. Diane Marie Amann reviews the charges against him, now that he’s in ICC custody.
• Justice in Conflict points to a clip of ICTY President Theodore Meron on BBC’s HARDtalk over the weekend discussing the progress of international justice since Nuremberg.

• Italy has promised India that the two Italian marines facing murder charges over the killing of two Indian fishermen mistaken for pirates will return to India today, after promises were made that the special court set up to rule on their case will respect their fundamental rights.
• Ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Russia, President Putin has said that the two former rivals help create a fairer world order.
• Religious tensions between Muslim and Buddhist communities are increasing in Western Myanmar with the government seemingly uninterested or unable to intervene.
• The UN Human Rights Council has unanimously voted to start an inquiry into human rights abuses in North Korea.
• The UN has also launched an investigation into allegations of use of chemical weapons in Syria.
• Kurdish PKK leader Ocalan has declared a ceasefire with Turkey in a historic gesture trying to bring an end to the nearly 30-year conflict.
• China is “extremely concerned” about joint discussions between the US and Japan on potential joint military efforts in case of armed conflict over the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu islands.
• Iran’s Supreme Leader Khameini is not against nuclear discussions with the US, though he also mentioned he was not too optimistic.
• Colombia and FARC have said that progress has been made in peace negotiations but that there are still disagreements.

• NATO and the Afghan government have reached an agreement on the phased withdrawal of US special forces from Wardak province, near Kabul.
• A Zimbabwean court has denied bail to a high profile human rights lawyer arrested over the weekend on charges of obstruction of justice during police searches.
• After reaffirming ties with Israel, US President Barack Obama faced Palestinian discontent while visiting the occupied West Bank, with leaders accusing Obama of sidelining their plans for statehood.
• Two rockets fired from the Gaza Strip hit the Israeli city of Sderot while President Obama was visiting Jerusalem.
• North Korea threatens a strike on US airbases in response to joint military exercises performed recently by the US and South Korea.
• The US wants M23 rebel leader Bosco Ntaganda out of its Rwandan embassy soon and into ICC custody. Justice in Conflict covers whether Rwanda could potentially stop this transfer by not allowing Ntaganda’s safe passage from the embassy in Kagali to the airport.
• The UN Dispute Tribunal has awarded $65,000 to whistleblower James Wasserstrom, only 2% of what he had claimed; the tribunal found U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon and the U.N. Ethics Office failed to properly review claims that he suffered retaliation for alleging U.N. corruption in Kosovo.
• Indonesia’s government is proposing ratification of the Rome Statute, although the reasons may have more to do with domestic elections than with a sudden commitment to international criminal law.
• Despite charges being dropped against his co-accused Muthara last week due to problems with evidence and a key witness, Uhuru Kenyatta’s case at the ICC will continue, according to the Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda.
• Foreign Policy has a piece related to Deborah’s post yesterday about getting the CIA  out of the drone business warning drone critics to be careful what they wish for.

• For more on M23 leader Bosco Ntaganda’s surrender to the US Embassy in Rwanda Monday, the Armed Groups and International Law blog has a background piece here, Justice in Conflict talks about it at length here, the BBC coverage of the ICC’s welcoming his surrender is here and Reuters talks about the US’ efforts in transferring him to the ICC here. 
• In other ICC-related news, Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda has an op-ed in the NY Times about international justice and diplomacy.
• According to military officials, hunger strikes at Guantanamo Bay have nearly doubled since last week.
• A man claiming to be Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb’s spokesperson in Mali has claimed that a French hostage, kidnapped in November 2011, has been beheaded as a result of French intervention in Mali.
• Amnesty International has said that arms embargoes don’t work and has urged countries to go forth with ratifying an arms control treaty.
• The imprisoned PKK leader, Abdullah Ocalan, has said he will make a “historic call” today, raising expectations for a ceasefire announcement to end the almost 30-year-old conflict.
• In Ankara, two explosions have damaged Turkey’s Justice Ministry and the offices of the Prime Minister Erdogan’s party.
• President Obama is visiting Israel and Palestine.
• Days before the start of his posthumous trial, Russia has closed the investigation into the death of Sergei Magnitsky, while he was imprisoned for tax evasion. His death was the trigger for the US Magnitsky Act in late 2012, which in turn caused Russia to freeze US adoptions.
• South Korea is investigating a cyber attack that affected three broadcasters and two major banks, and although officials refuse to speculate there are concerns that North Korea may have been involved.

• Bosco Ntaganda, the leader of the M23 rebel group in the DRC, turned himself into the US Embassy in Kigali, Rwanda yesterday. Ntaganda is wanted by the ICC for charges including recruiting and using child soldiers, murder, rape and sexual slavery, and persecution.
• Counsel for Kenyan Uhuru Kenyatta asked the ICC yesterday to drop charges against his client for a lack of evidence.
• The Council of Europe has urged Azerbaijan to uphold basic freedoms and human rights.
• The US confirmed that Syrian rockets have been fired into northern Lebanon, demonstrating an escalating level of violence and violations of Lebanese sovereignty.
• The Argentine president, Cristina Fernandez, asked the new Pope to intervene on Argentina’s behalf in the Falkland Islands dispute.
• Israel’s new housing minister pledged new settlement building in Judea and Samaria, in line with the policy of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s previous cabinet.
• The trial of ex-Guatamalan president Montt is slated to begin in Guatamala City today; Montt faces charges of genocide and crimes against humanity.
• On the 10th anniversary of the US invasion in Iraq, Baghdad‘s Shia areas have been the target of a series of deadly car bombs.
• Chinese President Xi Jinping and US Treasury Secretary Jack Lew met in Beijing earlier today to discuss trade and economic issues.
• China is seeking trade negotiations with Japan and South Korea later this year in an effort to counter the TPPA negotiations.