Following the EU's example yesterday, the US has recognized Syria's opposition as the legitimate representative of the Syrian people and many more world powers are poised to do the same at the “Friends of the Syrian People” conference opens today in Morocco. Human Rights Watch has a report of the Syrian government using incendiary bombs on at least four occasions since mid-November in...
The WTO General Council yesterday approved Tajikistan's accession package, opening the way for membership 30 days after ratification of the package by Tajikistan. The ACLU will file a petition this morning with the Inter-American Human Rights Commission over the treatment of Jose Padilla by the US government since his designation as 'enemy combatant' in 2001. Mali's Prime Minister resigned after the military arrested him for not...
Today is International Human Rights Day; 64 years ago, the UN Declaration of Human Rights was signed. The Empire State Building in New York will be illuminated in blue today to honor the work of Human Rights Watch. Also today, and with the end of the year fast approaching, Amnesty International has released its year in human rights for 2012. The 18th...
Upcoming Events The American Society of International Law's Domestic Courts Interest Group is hosting its annual workshop December 10, 2012, at Duke University School of Law. More information can be found here. On December 18, at 5:30pm, the Center on the United States and Europe at Brookings will host the 9th Annual Raymond Aron Lecture, a talk on “The Internationalization of Law” by Collège de...
Venezuela’s president Hugo Chavez will miss Friday’s regional trade summit in Brazil, raising questions about his health. US warships are shifting in order to monitor the planned rocket launch by North Korea, while the US still urges Pyongyang to cancel this exercise. Violence has surged around Damascus as Syrian government forces shell rebel-controlled areas. The UN Special Envoy for Syria held discussions with...
Russia has heavily criticized the ICTY for its verdict last week acquitting three, calling the work of the Court careless and ineffective. Iran's media reports its military has claimed to have extracted data from the US drone it captured earlier in the week, proving the US was spying on Iran. A US drone strike killed three suspected al-Qaeda militants in Pakistan. Despite international...
A WTO Arbitrator has ruled that the reasonable period of time for the US to comply with the requirements in the US-COOL decision expires 10 months from the day the Panel and Appellate Body reports were adopted. Angry crowds surrounded the Presidential Palace in Cairo, Egypt, to protest President Morsi's recent decision to extend his own power, causing the President to leave the palace...
The US has criticized Israel's decision to expand settlements in the E1 area, following the UNGA's decision to grant Palestine non-member state status. Five European countries (France, Denmark, Sweden, the UK and Spain) and the Australian government has also summoned the Israeli ambassador in protest. Despite the criticism, Israel plans to move ahead with the settlement construction. More analysis about the effect of...
Syrian forces have pounded rebel-held areas of Damascus, trying to keep them away from the airport so flights can resume. After last Thursday's decision from the ICTY Appeals Chamber, acquitting former Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj and two others, Kosovo’s government has demanded an investigation into the actions of the lead prosecutor, Carla del Ponte, accusing her of abuse of power and filing unfounded...
Israel has hammered the Gaza Strip in a series of airstrikes, one of which has killed Hamas' military commander Ahmad Jabari. The United Nations Population Fund has declared contraception and family planning to be a human right having a positive effect on economic development. Unlike France, the United States has stopped short of recognizing Syria's opposition coalition. Nigerian lawmakers have passed a bill criminalizing same-sex marriage. The International Monetary Fund...
UN Development Program Chair, Helen Clark, has argued for a greater UN economic role. Preparations are underway to exhume Yasser Arafat's body for forensic analysis. France has become the first European country to recognize the Syrian opposition coalition as the sole representative of its people. Despite the EU's decision to suspend its ETS with respect to international aviation, the US House of Representatives has accepted a modified...
The EU has stopped the clock on the inclusion of international aviation in its Emissions Trading System to allow recent developments in the ICAO negotiations on global aviation greenhouse gas emissions, mentioned in yesterday's news wrap, to run their course. Argentina is preparing to file a claim at the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea in Hamburg to obtain the release of its vessel...
