Opinio Juris » Weekday News Wrap

Weekday News Wrap: Thursday, March 7, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

The rebel leader whose followers invaded Sabeh has called for a ceasefire with Malaysia.
According to US Attorney General Eric Holder, President Obama will release more information about the US drone program; further commenting on the program, Holder did not rule out drone strike attacks on US soil in extraordinary circumstances akin to 9/11.
US and European officials are worried about the rise in English-language videos coming from Islamic extremist groups.
Because of North Korea’s latest nuclear test, Australia has barred the country from reopening its embassy in Canberra.
The Chinese are trying to “wear out” the Japanese ships around the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands.
Sudan and South Sudan are poised to continue talks to set up a demilitarized border zone, ultimately aimed at resolving a land and oil dispute between the two countries.
The UN has partially lifted an arms embargo on Somalia for a year in order to allow the Somalian military to train to fight Islamic militants in the region.
The ECHR Blog has pointed out that the European Court of Human Rights is now on Twitter: @ECHR_Press
EJIL: Talk! has a post about the recent ICC privileges and immunities decision.
Professor William Schabas also has a post about the ICC on his blog referring to the problems he perceives in the case against Kenyan Ambassador Francis Muthaura.

March 7th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/03/07/weekday-news-wrap-thursday-march-7-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Wednesday, March 6, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has died from cancer. Thousands of mourners took to the streets to pay their respects to their late president. World leader reactions: here.
A trial on Operation Condor of the 1970s and 1980s in South America has started in Buenos Aires. It is expected that the proceedings could take up to two years to conclude.
North Korea threatens to end its 1953 armistice agreement after the US, with Chinese backing, introduced a draft Security Council resolution to punish North Korea for its recent nuclear test. South Korea says it is ready to strike back, should the North attack.
Two “Palestinian-only” buses were torched overnight by unknown assailants.
The UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees has canceled its annual fundraising marathon in Gaza after Hamas decided to ban women from participating in the event.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, has condemned “abhorrent” attacks against Tanzania’s albino population.
Two Pakistan officials have vehemently denied the New York Times’ story yesterday of two drone strikes being disavowed by the United States and purportedly carried out by Pakistan itself, calling the report a “distortion of the facts.”
ISAF will stop reporting on Taliban attacks, though they will still collect the data; this move comes after admitting to an incorrect reporting last week of a 7% decline in attacks when there has been no decline at all.
At least 70 have died and thousands have fled their homes in eastern Congo amid violence between rebels and government forces. According to a Russian envoy, the UN Security Council hopes to approve a special force to combat the rebels by the end of March.
Syrian warplanes bombarded the fallen city of Raqqa yesterday in an attempt to reclaim the area from the rebels.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees has announced the the number of Syrian refugees has grown strongly since the start of the year and now exceeds more than one million, putting pressure on neighboring states.
The Obama administration has taken domestic steps to implement its 2010 commitments on IMF voting reform, but it is unclear at this stage whether the measure will be passed by Congress.
Foreign Policy points out that momentum is building to declassify information related to the US’ secret detention program run by the CIA.
FP also asks the blunt question: Has anybody noticed that Malaysia is at war? Though we can’t speak for others, we have definitely taken notice here at OJ and reported on it yesterday in our News Wrap.

March 6th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/03/06/weekday-news-wrap-wednesday-march-6-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Tuesday, March 5, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

The head of the IAEA has urged Iran to allow international inspectors access to a military site near Tehran to explore whether nuclear tests have been carried out there.
The UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Counterterrorism, Ben Emmerson, has urged the US to publish a Bush-era detention and rendition program report.
On the island of Borneo, Malaysian troops attacked an armed Filipino group with jets and mortars in an attempt to end a standoff that has claimed at least 27 lives so far.
Uhrhu Kenyatta is shown in early tallies to be ahead in the Kenyan presidential election after voting yesterday; charges have been confirmed by the pre-trial chamber of the ICC against Kenyatta for crimes against humanity.
Amnesty International has called on the UN Security Council not to end the 21-year-long arms embargo in Somalia, describing the idea as premature and potentially hazardous to the Somalian humanitarian situation (Amnesty statement here).
Syrian rebel forces have captured the city of Raqqa, the provincial capital, and crowds toppled the statue of President Bashar Al-Assad’s father.
A British inquiry into allegations of torture and abuse by British soldiers in Iraq was shown gruesome pictures of bloodied corpses and faced testimony of missing body parts in evidence.
Our own Kevin Jon Heller has joined the ongoing debate at Lawfare about the capture-versus-kill debate in IHL.
The UN Security Council is expected to adopt a resolution today increasing sanctions on North Korea.
Vice-President Biden has told AIPAC members that President Obama is serious when threatening military force if necessary to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

March 5th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/03/05/weekday-news-wrap-tuesday-march-5-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Monday, March 4, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

Sudan’s government has violated UN sanctions on the Darfur region by carrying out airstrikes in the country’s west.
Israel has plans to launch “Palestinian-only” buses to transport people from the West Bank to Israel, in a move officials claim is designed to reduce traffic congestion but many concerned with civil rights see this as a move toward further segregation.
Al-Qaeda has issued an English-language magazine (downloadable) offering advice on how to torch parked cars and cause traffic accidents in addition to calling on militants to attack public figures, such as author Salman Rushdie, Dutch politician Geert Wilders, Islam-critic Aayan Hirsi Ali and Pastor Terry Jones.
NATO has apologized for killing two 10-year-old boys in a case of “mistaken identity” in a firefight with the Taliban.
The UN Security Council has set the stage to lift an arms embargo in Somalia in order to train the army to fight Islamists in the region; the resolution will come to a vote on Wednesday.
The US will give $250 million in budget aid to Egypt after President Morsi promised to carry out economic reforms.
Violence is brewing in Malaysia’s Sabah province after Philippine Muslims invaded to reassert a territorial claim pre-dating colonization. The Philippines is considering taking up the issue with the International Court of Justice.
The Cambodian translators at the ECCC have gone on strike to protest after budget shortfalls left them without pay since December.
At the conference of the Convention on Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), Thailand’s Prime Minister has vowed to close legal loopholes that made Thailand a hub for the illegal trade in ivory tusks of African elephants, but environmental activists are yet to be convinced.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that Iran is using the extra time gained by new IAEA negotiations to build a nuclear bomb.
Many Kenyans living abroad as a part of a 2.5-million-citizen diaspora have expressed feeling cheated out of their right to vote in today’s presidential election.
A UN senior official has addressed sexual violence issues in Cambodia and Kenya.
Human Rights Watch has called for an end to the violence in Bangladesh in light of the recent sentencing of opposition leader Jamaat-e-Islaami. Jurist has more here.
Foreign Policy recently carried out a survey of 70 experts about global conflicts; an analysis of the results can be found here.
The Bureau of Investigative Journalism reported last week that UK terror suspects are being stripped of their citizenship before being killed by US drones.

March 4th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/03/04/weekday-news-wrap-monday-march-4-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Friday, March 1, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

Ex-Yugoslav army leader Momcilo Perisic was acquitted on appeal at the ICTY yesterday.
After the sentencing to death of Jamaat e-Islami in Bangladesh, deadly clashes broke out, where at least 30 were killed and more than 200 injured.
The UN is accused of a cover-up in a humanitarian mission for a cholera outbreak in Zimbabwe in 2008 that cost some 4,000 lives; the information was allegedly held back in order not to upset President Robert Mugabe.
Major Western donors have stepped up efforts to increase aid to Somalia and have also praised recent rebuilding efforts.
Despite the most recent nuclear test by North Korea, China is moving ahead with its plans to establish a North Korea trade zone.
The ruling on compelling the United States to hand over evidence against Kim Dotcom, accused of mass copyright infringement, money laundering and internet piracy, has been overturned by the court of appeal in New Zealand.
In case you were hoping to submit public comment to proposed changes to the IAHCR, the deadline is today.
In light of Wednesday’s House Judiciary Committee hearing, Esquire has a post about why the drones used by the US are just a sideshow.

March 1st, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/03/01/weekday-news-wrap-friday-march-1-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Thursday, February 28, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

The ICTY is scheduled to release the appeals decision in the Momčilo Perišić case at 3:00 p.m. Hague time today.
The European Parliament’s Environment Committee has approved the European Commission’s proposal to “stop the clock” on the inclusion of aviation in the EU ETS.
The EU has agreed to cap banker bonuses at a maximum of one-year’s basic annual salary.
China has arrested five Tibetans for inciting self-immolations, allegedly under the instruction of foreigners such as journalist with Voice of America.
Thailand will start peace talks with Muslim rebels in the South.
US Secretary of State John Kerry is in Rome for talks with the Syrian opposition.
A 2011 speech by newly minted US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel has caused furore in India, because of allegations that India has used Afghanistan as a “second front” against arch-rival Pakistan.
An internal report by EU Heads of Mission in East Jerusalem has been critical of Israeli settlement policies and argued in favor of withholding funds that could benefit settlements and to avoid trade in goods produced on settlements.
The International Crimes Tribunal in Bangladesh has sentenced vice president Delwar Hossain Sayedee of the opposition Jamaat-e-Islami party to death for committing atrocities in the 1971 war of independence from Pakistan.
The UN Security Council has asked for a report on possible peacekeeping forces in Mali.
Also at the UN, a plan to lift the arms embargo for one year on Somalia is being circulated.
A new post is up at Justice in Conflict discussing the UN Security Council and the relationship between the ICC and R2P.

February 28th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/02/28/weekday-news-wrap-thursday-february-28-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Wednesday, February 27, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

Western powers have said that Iran is considering their offer of lifting some financial sanctions in return for a scaled-back nuclear program from Tehran.
Saudi Arabia has purchased a large amount of infantry weapons from Croatia and quietly funneled them to rebel forces in Syria.
Fighting rages on in Syria, with battles nearing a 12th-century mosque in Aleppo, threatening to further damage the historic structure.
Symantec Corp researchers have found that the Stuxnet virus that was deployed against Iran began in November 2007, two years earlier than previously thought.
An Egyptian court has ruled that all tunnels between Egypt and Gaza must be destroyed, removing a route for smuggling weapons but also a lifeline for Palestinians as an estimated 30% of the goods that come into Gaza arrives via these tunnels.
A district court in The Hague approved the extradition of al-Qaeda suspect Sabir Khan to the United States.
The British government sought to restrict KGB inquest disclosures in the case of ex-KGB spy Alexander Litvinenko who was poisoned in London in 2006. Ben Emmerson, the lawyer for Litvinenko’s family, has accused the UK government of a cover-up of evidence in order to improve British-Russian ties.
In an open letter, a group of UK MPs and Lords have called on the UK government, the G8 and the UN to take action on the human rights abuse in Congo.
The WTO has released the Panel decision on Chinese anti-dumping duties on EU X-ray scanners.
Justice in Conflict has a post about the relationship of R2P and the ICC.

February 27th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/02/27/weekday-news-wrap-wednesday-february-27-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Tuesday, February 26, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

The Associated Press has released a translation of a jihadist instruction manual (.pdf) of how to avoid being a victim of a drone strike found in a pile of garbage in Timbuktu, Mali.
As thousands mourn the death of a Palestinian prisoner in an Israeli jail, fears of a revolt grow. The U.N. has called for an investigation into the death reportedly caused by torture.
A rocket has been sent from the Gaza strip into Southern Israel.
Syria’s Foreign Minister has said in Moscow that the Syrian government is willing to talk, even to armed opposition groups while the rebels meanwhile have reportedly changed their tune, and are now willing again to participate in talks in Rome.
US Senators have written to Herman Van Rompuy, the President of the EU Council, asking to do more to prevent use of European Central Bank accounts by Iran’s regime to circumvent US and EU sanctions.
If Iran will curb its nuclear program, major powers will offer reduced financial santions later this week in talks in Kazakhstan.
The BBC reports that its English-language radio broadcasts are being jammed in China, suggesting the Chinese authorities are behind the disruption.
Polish prosecutors dropped charges against the former Polish intelligence chief connected with allegaions of the CIA’s secret prison in Poland used for al-Qaeda suspects.
The trial against BP and other companies connected with the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico began this week.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon reiterated his desire for a global moratorium on the death penalty yesterday.
UK newspapers are challenging the decision of the government to invoke national security and international relations reasons when withholding evidence from the inquest into the 2006 polonium poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko.
China’s new leader has promised to aim for peaceful relations between the Chinese mainland and Taiwan.
Cuba’s President Raul Castro has been re-elected for his final term, and has appointed a political heir who will most likely become the first Cuban leader born after the revolution.
Over at the Armed Groups and International Law blog, the authors have posted another Legal Roundup.

February 26th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | 1 Comment » http://opiniojuris.org/2013/02/26/weekday-news-wrap-tuesday-february-26-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Monday, February 25, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

South Korea has inaugurated its first female president, Park Guen-Hye, who now faces regional tensions amid North Korea’s nuclear testing. In one of her first moves as president, she demanded an end to nuclear ambitions by North Korea.
Afghanistan’s president, Hamid Karzai, has expelled US special forces from the key battleground Wardak province, because, according to Karzai’s spokesperson, some US soldiers were found to have recently tortured or killed innocent people.
African Union leaders signed a UN brokered agreement over the weekend aimed at peace in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The Syrian opposition has decided to boycott international talks, saying that the world has turned its back on the war-torn nation and calling the lack of international action “shameful.”
The US has sent 100 troops to Niger to construct a drone base from which Predator drones will operate.
In other drone news, a recent study found that drone pilots are susceptible to the same bouts of depression, post-traumatic stress and anxiety as pilots of manned aircraft deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan.
Dozens of people have been killed in renewed tribal battles in North Darfur.
Palestinian officials have accused Israelis of torturing a Palestinian prisoner held in Hebron to death; Israeli officials have said the autopsy results were preliminary and inconclusive to tell. Around 3,000 Palestinian inmates have gone on a one-day hunger-strike in protest.

February 25th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/02/25/weekday-news-wrap-monday-february-25-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Friday, February 22, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

The Syrian opposition, the Syrian National Coalition, is willing to negotiate a peace agreement, but they demand that President Al-Assad cannot be a part of any deal going forward.
Syria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has blamed al-Qaeda affiliated groups for yesterday’s deadly blasts in Damascus, and called on the UN to do more to fight terrorism.
Japan’s Prime Minister Abe is in the US for talks with President Obama during a time of heightened regional tension for the island nation.
French and Malian troops battle in renewed clashes in the Malian city of Gao.
Egypt will hold parliamentary elections in four stages, the first set to begin April 27th.
For the first time, an American official–Senator Lindsey Graham–has divulged that 4,700 have been killed in the US’ secret drone wars.
The EU wants Cambodia to come up with more money to fund the Extraordinary Chambers of the Courts of Cambodia, the war crimes tribunal trying former Khmer Rouge officials.
Human Rights Watch urges The Netherlands to stop the deportation of Somalis until the security situation becomes more stable in the African country, as it would contravene various human rights obligations.
China’s Ministry of Finance is planning to impose carbon taxes and emission limits on some of its most polluting industries.
Three blasts in Hyderabad, India, have killed at least 15.
A week before talks are due to start, a confidential IAEA report claims that Iran is installing advanced centrifuges that can speed up the process of uranium enrichment.
Ethnic tensions are rising in Kenya with elections looming in less than two weeks.

February 22nd, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/02/22/weekday-news-wrap-friday-february-22-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Thursday, February 21, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

Yesterday, Myanmar held peace talks between ethnic groups in Chiang Mai, Thailand, in an attempt to resolve the ongoing Kachin conflict.
British Prime Minister David Cameron suggested to diverting hundreds of millions of pounds sterling from foreign aid into security and defense.
A French General appointed to head the EU’s mission to Mali urged the EU to equip the “very impoverished” Malian forces, stating equipping the forces was just as important as training them.
A recent Amnesty International report (.pdf) found that South Sudan has been holding opposition forces without charges or access to lawyers since the unrest broke out in December.
According to a diplomat who spoke to Reuters, major powers are prepared to make “a substantial and serious offer” to Iran next week during talks if Iran provides concessions on its nuclear program.
Two years after the Arab Spring, Tunisia is looking for a new Prime Minister after attempts to form an apolitical technocratic cabinet failed.
The US is considering extending the use of diplomacy to battle the theft of trade secrets.
In his first major speech since becoming the US Secretary of State, John Kerry has defended the importance of foreign affairs spending for national security and growth.
Foreign Policy covers the US State Department’s warning issued yesterday to all its citizens abroad to be afraid of everything, everywhere.

February 21st, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/02/21/weekday-news-wrap-thursday-february-21-2013/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Wednesday, February 20, 2013

by Jessica Dorsey

An Israeli soldier has caused outrage because of a photo posted to Instagram showing what appears to be a Palestinian child in the crosshairs of his rifle.
Chinese government officials considered using a drone to target a suspected drug lord hiding in Myanmar.
In other drone news, the United Arab Emirates has signed a contract with the US to purchase approximately $200 million worth of American-made drones.
Reuters provides coverage of the pre-trial hearing of Laurent Gbagbo at the ICC, a proceeding which began yesterday.
20 rebels are dead and one French soldier has been killed in the ongoing conflict in Mali.
A scud-type missile has killed at least 20 people in Syria’s Aleppo, showing evidence that the army is turning to longer-range weapons to battle rebels in Syria’s second-largest city.
The UN warns of a “humanitarian tragedy” in Syria as more than 4 million people are in need of assistance.
Qatar’s PM has criticised the EU extension of the blanket arms embargo on Syria.
The government of Bulgaria has resigned this morning amid mass protests.
China’s Defence Ministry has denied that the People’s Liberation Army is behind cyberattacks on the US, as claimed by internet security firm Mandiant earlier this week.
Another episode in the whale wars: according to Sea Shepherd a Japanese whaling ship has collided with its boat, the Steve Irwin.

February 20th, 2013 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2013/02/20/weekday-news-wrap-wednesday-february-20-2013/ |

Archive of posts for categoryWeekday News Wrap

Archive of posts for category
Weekday News Wrap