In association with the International Commission of Jurists

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16 Jul

Geoff Manaugh of BLDGBLOG, has up two posts on sovereignty and geography. Quoting from Neal Ascherson, one post begins: There "may or may not have been," he writes, "something called the 'Akwizgran Discrepancy'." It's now just "a forgotten thread of diplomatic folklore." (Ascherson, by the way, is the author of Black Sea, an excellent history of the region.) The discrepancy may have been a small...

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16 Jul

It looks like Duncan's analysis  of the potential problem in the Betancourt hostage rescure was on target. Bloomberg reports: A Colombia soldier wore a Red Cross emblem during the rescue of 15 hostages earlier this month, President Alvaro Uribe said. Uribe, who apologized for the use of the symbol, said the move wasn't sanctioned by the government and the soldier did it...

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16 Jul

In a both metaphorical and literal last gasp effort, Mexico has won an "indication of provisional measures" from the International Court of Justice ordering that the United States (and Texas in particular) take all necessary measures to stop the pending executions of Mexican nationals. The United States of America shall take all measures necessary to ensure that Messrs. José Ernesto Medellín Rojas, César...

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16 Jul

Here's a surprise -- China opposes indicting Bashir: China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said Beijing maintains friendly relations with Sudan and is deeply concerned and worried about the charges. He says the situation in the Darfur region is at a sensitive and critical moment. He says China hopes all sides can resolve their differences through consultation and avoid adding complications...

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16 Jul

This is a fascinating story: the State Department, the Iranian government, and the NBA have joined forces to arrange for the Iranian men's basketball team to train and play next week against NBA teams in Salt Lake City: Iran will take part in the Rocky Mountain Revue, the Utah-hosted summer league and will play four games. The team will also observe...

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16 Jul

Okay, I really, really hate the Wallabies.  But not this much: The United States planned to gas Australian troops in experiments with two of the most lethal nerve gases ever devised, newly declassified files have revealed. Previously top secret documents have shown that even as the world was outlawing chemical weapons at the height of the Cold War, Washington sought Canberra's permission...

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15 Jul

I am thrilled to report that our friend and colleague Janet Levit has been named the new dean at the University of Tulsa Law School.  Janet is an accomplished international law scholar and has proven her considerable management skills as the interim dean at Tulsa since last fall.  She is also an alum of Opinio Juris, and a warm and supportive...

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15 Jul

Stranger things have happened.  The Carnegie Council's Ethics & International Affairs, a quarterly journal with consistently thoughtful interdisciplinary material, has this essay in its summer issue by Campbell Craig on the resurgence of the idea of world government.  Craig finds three strands in recent thinking on the question, which basically boil down to why, how and and whether.  The ''why' will...

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15 Jul

Senators Arlen Specter and Joe Lieberman have a joint commentary in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal (July 14, 2008), promoting a federal law to discourage so-called “libel tourism."  Libel tourism refers to the practice of a plaintiff suing for libel in a plaintiff-friendly jurisdiction – i.e., the UK – and then seeking to have the judgment enforced in US and other...

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15 Jul

I appreciate Kevin's thoughtful and evenhanded assessment of the ICC Prosecutor's complex decision to seek the arrest of Sudan's president.  There are indeed good arguments both for and against the ICC Prosecutor's move. I'm torn myself.  I have articulated many times before my skepticism of the ICC's effectiveness in helping to end the violence or even to bring justice for Darfur....

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14 Jul

My thanks for Chris' generous introduction, and I want to say how honored I am to join the team at Opinio Juris.  I have followed it closely from its first days, and have watched with admiration as it has grown into the amazing blog it is today.  The migration to the new format is just a part of that -...

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14 Jul

In conjunction with the announcement of our new partnership with Oxford University Press, Opinio Juris is pleased to roll out our redesigned site. A lot of hard work has gone into the redesign and we want to thank Seth Elalouf of Spacesuit Group Design for his technical and design support during our migration to a new hosting platform and...

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