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General

02 Mar

Your weekly selection of international law and international relations headlines from around the world: Africa The Malian government has signed a peace agreement with some northern rebel groups but the main Tuareg armed coalition asked for more time to consult its grassroots. Sierra Leone's Vice President Samuel Sam-Sumana has placed himself in quarantine following the death of one of his bodyguards from Ebola,...

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27 Feb

Yesterday, as members of Congress continued to debate the need for a new AUMF against ISIS, lawyers for Guantanamo detainee Al Warafi have filed a new habeas petition to the D.C. District Court, arguing that the basis for detaining Warafi evaporated when the war in the Afghanistan ended. Specifically, the petition argues that the administration has conceded in prior litigation...

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24 Feb

If you haven't seen it yet, the Elders Proposal for Strengthening the UN is a must read.  Chaired by Kofi Annan, The Elders is an independent group of global leaders who work together for peace and human rights. Released earlier this month at a conference in Munich, the four proposals are generating a lot of attention include: 1)  A new category of Security...

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23 Feb

Your weekly selection of international law and international relations headlines from around the world: Africa A young girl with explosives strapped to her killed five people and wounded dozens at a security checkpoint outside a market in the northeast Nigerian town of Potiskum on Sunday, witnesses said. Boko Haram militants attacked an island on Niger's side of Lake Chad but the army repelled...

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21 Feb

Here is the advertisement, which I hope will be of interest to Opinio Juris readers: 3 x full-time posts & 1 x part-time (0.5 fte) post Lecturer: £33,476-£48,088 p.a / pro rata inclusive of London Allowance Senior Lecturer: £49,462-£56,975 p.a / pro rata inclusive of London Allowance The SOAS School of Law invites applications for 3 full-time and 1 part-time (0.5) Lectureships/Senior Lectureships in Law...

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21 Feb

This fortnight on Opinio Juris, Kevin recommended an article on China's proposed broad definition of terrorism, argued that there is no practice supporting the "unwilling or unable" test, and was surprised by the news that David Hicks' conviction for material support for terrorism has been voided. Julian questioned whether the Outer Space Treaty allows for private exploitation of the Moon's resources. Kristen advanced...

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16 Feb

On February 12, the UN Security Council unanimously passed an important new Chapter VII resolution – Resolution 2199 - to respond to terrorist groups in Iraq and Syria. This resolution is significant for four reasons.   First, the resolution specifically targets the supply of oil. In other words, it attempts to degrade the supply chain and the support networks.  The preamble refers...

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16 Feb

Your weekly selection of international law and international relations headlines from around the world: Africa A female suicide bomber has killed at least ten people at Damaturu Central Motor Park, a bus station in the northeast Nigerian city. Boko Haram fighters attacked a village in Chad on Friday, the first known lethal attack in that country by the Nigerian militant group, which killed several...

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15 Feb

The White House has proposed a draft resolution authorizing the President to use military force against ISIL (also know as "ISIS" or simply the "Islamic State"). While it is laudable that the president is asking for specific congressional authorization for military strikes against ISIL, I remain troubled by several aspects of the proposal. First, the passage of the proposed resolution would replace the existing...

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09 Feb

Your weekly selection of international law and international relations headlines from around the world: Africa Boko Haram fighters waged twin attacks Sunday in Niger, their latest front in a widening regional insurgency, with a market bomb blast sowing panic. At least two people were killed when Somali militants al Shabaab attacked the house of a senior police official in the semi-autonomous region of...

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