Opinio Juris » Weekday News Wrap

Weekday News Wrap: Thursday, May 2, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

North Korea has sentenced US citizen Kenneth Bae to 15 years’ hard labor for “crimes against the state.”
In a clash on the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan that lasted more than two hours, one Pakistani policeman was killed and two Afghani soldiers wounded.
The UK Supreme Court has ruled that the government has been failing to meet EU air quality standards and has solicited the European Court of Justice for guidance.
Chad has foiled an attempted coup that officials claim has been planned for months, with the arrest of several rebels.
The Pope has weighed in on the tragic factory accident in Bangladesh last week, calling the unjust wages “slave labor” and condemning unbridled quests for profit as going “against God.”
Foreign Policy has posted a guide on how to close Guantanamo.

May 2nd, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/05/02/weekday-news-wrap-thursday-may-2-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Wednesday, May 1, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

US President Barack Obama is making a new push to close the detention facilities at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, saying Gitmo is damaging US interests.
Chile will be Latin America’s only representative in the 2014-2015 UN Security Council.
The ECHR has ruled that Ukraine violated former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko’s rights by detaining her for politically motivated reasons.
The genocide trial against Guatemalan dictator Rios Montt has resumed, just short of two weeks after a judge suspended all proceedings.
The US is still investigating use of chemical weapons in Syria, with President Obama stating that depending on how the weapons were used, the US might have to rethink its strategy in Syria.
Foreign Policy has a post about why those wanting intervention in Syria are wrong.
The UN International Labor Organization released a report with one major finding that the key to ending child labor is to advocate social protections.
May Day protests, meant to demand better workers’ rights, are occurring around the world, in places such as Indonesia, The Philippines, Turkey, Cambodia and several European cities.

May 1st, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/05/01/weekday-news-wrap-wednesday-may-1-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Tuesday, April 30, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

The Syrian Prime Minister has survived a car bomb in Damascus, an event UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon labelled a “terrorist attack.”
Ban Ki-Moon also urged Syria to allow international experts access in order to establish whether chemical weapons were used. Meanwhile, in a phone call to President Putin, President Obama has expressed his concern over the use of chemical weapons in Syria.
The European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo (EULEX) sentenced five men to prison for their roles in an organ trafficking syndicate.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has admitted to taking money from the US CIA in order to pay for operational and health care costs as well as rent for some of the staff’s housing. Foreign Policy cheekily asks: do bags of cash ever help the CIA get what it wants?
British retailer Primark and Canadian brand Loblaw are two Western companies that will compensate families of the victims of last week’s tragic clothing factory accident in Bangladesh.
As nearly two-thirds of all detainees at Guantanamo have now joined the hunger strike, the US has sent extra medical staff to monitor the situation.
During their first summit in ten years, Japan and Russia have agreed to talks to settle their dispute over the four Pacific islands, known in Russia as the Southern Kuriles and in Japan as the Northern Territories. If successful, the negotiations will formally end WWII between the two states.
A change of guard in the Netherlands where Queen Beatrix is abdicating today and handing over the crown to her son Willem-Alexander, who becomes the country’s first King since the late 19th century.

April 30th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/04/30/weekday-news-wrap-tuesday-april-30-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Monday, April 29, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

According to a recent report, tens of millions of dollars from the CIA were delivered to the office of Afghanistan’s president, Hamid Karzai over the course of decades, meant to buy US influence in Afghanistan.
Syria’s neighbors are wary of a US-led intervention, should the US decide to take military action in the face of new evidence of chemical weapon use by the Syrian government–evidence that Syria claims is “inconsistent with reality and a barefaced lie.”
Iraq’s media regulator has suspended licenses of ten broadcasters, including Al-Jazeera, accusing them of inciting violence after reporting on security raids on a Sunni protest camp.
To complement Kevin’s post from the weekend, Jurist has more on the recent withdrawal of ICC Judge Christine van den Wyngaert from the Uhuru Kenyatta trial.
Foreign Policy highlights a document uncovering the US’ plans to carry out cyber attacks since the Clinton years.
The last of the South Korean workers at the joint industrial complex will withdrawal in the face of North Korea’s escalating nuclear threats.
Rebel fighters from Darfur have stormed the Sudanese city of Um Rawaba and have vowed to take Khartoum.
In a sign of rising patriotism, Japan celebrated its first “Restoration of Sovereignty” Day on Sunday, to celebrate the end of allied occupation after WWII.

April 29th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/04/29/weekday-news-wrap-monday-april-29-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Friday, April 26, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

In the wake of a factory building collapse in Bangladesh, in which at least 273 lives have been claimed, many are calling for reform by Western high-street brands that rely on cheap labor as the accident reignited questions about the often lethal conditions in the country’s garment industry. The Atlantic offers a piece about how garment workers are pushing for better conditions and Human Rights Watch calls for unionization of the workers and an overhaul of the factory inspection process, though the LA Times cites experts who are afraid even this tragedy is unlikely to spur reform.
North Korea has rejected the demands from South Korea to reopen the joint industrial zone and warned its neighbors to the south of “grave measures.”
As the discussion intensifies about Syria’s alleged use of chemical weapons, which the US suspects has happened on a “small scale,” a few articles are of note. First, Julian points out an editorial in the LA Times about possible ramifications and Obama’s “red line,” Lawfare also opines about this red line and Foreign Policy asks what Syria is capable of doing with its sarin stockpile.
The PKK has set a date of May 8 to start a withdrawal of its thousands of troops from Turkey into Northern Iraq after three decades of fighting against the Turkish government in a conflict that has cost more than 40,000 lives.
After a second round of voting, the race to become the next WTO Director-General has narrowed down to Herminio Blanco from Mexico and Roberto Azevedo of Brazil.
The UN Security Council has unanimously approved a plan to send a peacekeeping force to Mali.
The ECHR Blog has posted an analysis of the recent Grand Chamber decision upholding the ban on political advertising in Animal Defenders International v. UK.
Human Rights Watch reports that even more prisoners have joined a hunger strike at Guantanamo Bay bringing the total to 93 of the 166 prisoners there, though lawyers of the detained claim this number may be higher.
Another reminder about our New Voices feature: remember, if you’d like to participate, your 200-word summary and CV are due to opiniojurisblog [at] gmail [dot] com before May 1st!
And finally, perhaps some weekend reading for (soon-to-be) newly minted grads: a collection of articles, two from international law/international relations experts, offering advice to those weighing options about going to law school, going to grad school and whether to get a Ph.D.

April 26th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/04/26/weekday-news-wrap-friday-april-26-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Thursday, April 25, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

French President Hollande is receiving a warm welcome during his visit to Beijing, which according to the Financial Times is a snub to the UK government which has not been high on China’s welcome list after David Cameron’s meeting with the Dalai Lama last year.
US Treasury officials appeared before the House Appropriations subcommittee to push for a different allocation in US contributions to the IMF that would make good on a 2.5 year old promise to rearrange quota at the IMF.
Bolivia has filed a claim at the International Court of Justice against Chile to regain access to the Pacific Coast it lost in a 1904 Treaty concluded after the War of the Pacific of the 1880s.
Eric Posner has a column on Kiobel over at Slate.
Eager not to be left at a competitive disadvantage after the EU lifted economic sanctions earlier this week, the acting USTR is travelling to Myanmar to discuss a framework agreement on trade and investment.
The UK has signed a mutual legal assistance agreement with Jordan, which, according to the Home Secretary, includes fair trial guarantees, and should pave the way for the extradition of Abu Qatada to Jordan later this year.
More than 100 have been killed in two days of clashes in northern Iraq between the Shia-led government troops and Sunni Muslim protesters.
Syrian rebels and government forces blame one another for the destruction of a minaret of the more than 1,000-year-old Umayyad mosque in Aleppo, in an area of the city classified as a UNESCO heritage site.
South Korea seeks talks with North Korea on the reopening of the joint industrial zone.
Lawfare highlights a snippet of testimony given at yesterday’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on drones that alleges that the Obama Administration is targeting and killing low-level insurgents, the detainment of whom caused much criticism during the Bush Administration years.
In addition to British, French and Israeli allegations, Qatar is now saying that Syria has been using chemical weapons against its own people.
Under pressure from the political far-right, Switzerland has now restricted immigration from all EU countries, placing an annual restriction on the number of resident permits it allots.
Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic has “apologized” for the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, asking for forgiveness but stopping short of calling it a genocide.

April 25th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/04/25/weekday-news-wrap-thursday-april-25-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Wednesday, April 24, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

Clashes have escalated on the Syria-Lebanon border, causing worries that Lebanon will be pulled further into the Syrian conflict.
The French Parliament passed a bill legalizing same-sex marriage and extended the right to adopt children to same-sex couples as well, making France the 14th country in the world to do so.
India is alleging that a Chinese platoon has entered its Ladakh region, but China contends its troops remain on its side of their contested border.
Israel’s top intelligence official has alleged that the Syrian regime has used chemical weapons, but the US is still waiting for independent confirmation before taking further steps.
In talks with the emir of Qatar, President Obama has repeated his goal of a political transition in Syria and called on President Assad to resign.
21 people have been killed in Western China in what the authorities say were clashes between officials and suspected terrorists.
The United States has refused North Korea’s demand that it be recognized as a nuclear state.
Yesterday the US Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on accountability for drone strikes by the US, and though compelling testimony (video here) was given, and both Republican and Democratic Senators pushed for answers, no official from the Obama Administration was present to answer any of the questions posed.

April 24th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/04/24/weekday-news-wrap-wednesday-april-24-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Tuesday, April 23, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

Today at 4:00 p.m. EST, a hearing will take place in the US Senate entitled: Drone Wars: The Constitutional and Counterterrorism Implications of Targeted Killings; you can watch it on the webcast live. Lawfare has highlighted five ways to reform the targeted killing program ahead of today’s hearing.
A car bomb has exploded outside the French embassy in Tripoli.
In an already tense diplomatic atmosphere over the visit of Japanese cabinet ministers to the Yasukuni shrine, Japan’s PM has warned that they will respond with force if Chinese vessels in the East China Sea attempt to land on the disputed Diaoyu/Senkaku islands.
Canada has arrested two men it believed were planning a terror attack on a passenger train between Canada and the US.
The EU has permanently lifted trade, economic and individual sanctions against Myanmar, but an arms embargo remains in place.
In a letter to the Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, the EU Commissioner for Internal Markets and Services has complained about US proposal to impose higher capital requirements on the US subsidiaries of EU banks, which the EU considers a protectionist measure.
General Dempsey, the US chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is in China for talks with his Chinese counterpart during which cyber-attacks are high on the agenda.
Israel has claimed that Syria has used lethal chemical weapons, most likely nerve gas (Sarin), in the fight against rebel forces.
The UK has said if Scotland is to gain its independence in next year’s referendum, there is no reason to allow the nation to share the same currency as the UK.
The ECHR Blog features an analysis of two cases the Court decided last week with implications on removal and extradition.
Foreign Policy offers a story on Burma’s President Thein Sein, who accepted a prestigious peace award from the International Crisis Group yesterday for progress in moving his country forward while at the same time his government is currently implicated in the ethnic cleansing charges against 125,000 Rohingya Muslims in the southwest of Burma.
In honor of Earth Day yesterday, Oxford University Press has posted a quiz: How Much Do You Know About Environmental Law?

April 23rd, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/04/23/weekday-news-wrap-tuesday-april-23-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Monday, April 22, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

The Syrian opposition is reporting the slaughter of at least 80 people by government troops in a town south of Damascus.
Human Rights Watch has accused authorities in Myanmar of conducting a campaign of ethnic cleansing against the Rohingya Muslim minority.
Heavy fighting between the Nigerian military and the Boko Haram insurgents has cost almost 200 lives over the weekend.
An Afghan girls’ school may have been victim to poison gas as 74 girls were treated over the weekend after smelling gas in the school; most have been released but some remain in critical condition.
Just before the weekend, the United States Department of State released its 2012 Country Reports.
Israel has announced that its air force is on track in developing a drone that will replace all piloted aircraft for air, ground and naval forces.
In another twist to the genocide trial in Guatemala against former president Efrain Rios Montt, a judge reversed Thursday’s suspension of the trial and called the court to order.

April 22nd, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/04/22/weekday-news-wrap-monday-april-22-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Friday, April 19, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

If you haven’t been able to keep up with all of our posts on Wednesday’s Kiobel decision, An has a great round-up post here. Don’t forget that unsolicited submissions are still welcome for consideration.
In other Kiobel news, ASIL has posted Curtis Bradley’s Insight here (.pdf).
A judge in the Guatemalan case against former president Efrain Rios Montt has suspended his genocide trial on procedural grounds.
Following briefings on the bleak humanitarian situation in Syria, the Security Council managed to find a consensus on a non-binding statement demanding an end to the escalating violence and human rights violations and urging both sides of the conflict not to restrict access to aid organizations.
The United States has been looking into evidence of possible chemical weapon use in Syria and have preliminarily concluded that more review is necessary.
Pakistani police have arrested former president Pervez Musharraf; he has been placed under house arrest for two days until he can be presented to an anti-terrorism court in Islamabad.
Two rockets have been fired from Gaza into Israel, coming a day after rockets were fired into the Israeli resort town of Eilat, both causing no injuries.
The President of the ICRC, Peter Maurer, has urged the United States to exercise a “very restrained use of drones” in their strategy against al-Qaeda, reiterating that if drones are used outside of a recognized armed conflict, “there is a problem.”
EJIL: Talk! has a post by Gena Heathcote entitled: Is it the right time to reconsider jus ad bellum proportionality? A response to Kretzmer’s “The inherent right to self-defense and proportionality in jus ad bellum.“
Over at the International Economic Law and Policy Blog, Rob Howse reports on concerns raised by Kenya about irregularities in the selection process of the five candidates, shortlisted to become the next WTO Director-General.

April 19th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/04/19/weekday-news-wrap-friday-april-19-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Thursday, April 18, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

In case you missed it, the US Supreme Court ruled on Kiobel v. Royal Dutch Petroleum affirming the Second Circuit Court of Appeals’ dismissal. We have an insta-symposium (scroll down to related links to see all posts so far) going on with contributions from many prominent voices. As Roger noted yesterday, if you’d like to post on Kiobel, please contact us. SCOTUS Blog also has a nice roundup.
A Pakistani court has ordered the arrest of former president Pervez Musharraf connected to allegations of treason in 2007.
North Korea has demanded an end to the sanctions if the United States wants a dialogue.
Serbia and Kosovo have failed to come to an agreement, calling Serbia’s accession to the EU into question.
Egyptian prosecutors have ordered former president Hosni Mubarak back to prison from the military hospital in which he was staying.
The US is dispatching army planners to Jordan but is wary of direct American intervention in Syria.
Human Rights Watch has urged Libya to allow access for Al-Senussi, char
For readers who follow the US’ current conflict with al-Qaeda and affiliated forces closely, you may recall two guest posts (here and here) about a recent symposium entitled The Boundaries of the Battlefield. The organizers of that symposium (full-disclosure: I was one of them) have written a summary report on the symposium.

April 18th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/04/18/weekday-news-wrap-thursday-april-18-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Wednesday, April 17, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

Yesterday, the ICJ reached its judgment in the frontier dispute between Burkina Faso and Niger. The BBC has more here.
According to a bipartisan report by the Constitution Project (.pdf), the US has engaged in torture at the highest levels. Human Rights Watch also offers a statement here.
The New Zealand parliament has passed a bill legalizing same-sex marriage.
Privacy International has sued the United Kingdom over concerns for refusing to divulge information surrounding surveillance equipment used by the UK.
Ex-rebels have launched reprisal attacks in the Central African Republic’s capital, Bangui, while the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, has expressed grave concern that since the overthrow of the government three weeks ago, there has been a rise of torture, rape, kidnappings and targeted killings in the country.
Foreign Policy has a piece showcasing China as a cyberwar victim to US hackers.
Human Rights Watch highlights several recent attacks in Somalia, specifically against a courthouse and an aid workers’ convoy, carried out by Al-Shebaab and classifying them as war crimes.
The Pakistan Taliban have denied any involvement in the Boston Marathon bombing.
The President of the General Assembly and former foreign affairs minister of Serbia, Vuk Jeremic, has defended last week’s General Assembly meeting on international justice and reaffirmed his criticism of the ICTY as a template for other war crimes tribunals.
Over at Foreign Affairs, David Kaye asks how long America’s honeymoon with the ICC will last.
The European Commission has given Serbia a final chance to reach a deal with Kosovo by delaying the release of a report on Serbia’s preparedness to become an EU Member State.
The EU is also holding out the carrot of membership to Albania in an effort to ensure that the June elections live up to international standards.
The EU’s Trade Commissioner is considering to investigate subsidies of Huawei and ZTE even in the absence of a formal complaint by European competitors.

April 17th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/04/17/weekday-news-wrap-wednesday-april-17-2013/ |

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Weekday News Wrap