This post is part of the Harvard International Law Journal Volume 54(1) symposium. Other posts in this series can be found in the related posts below. This symposium features a series of four responses to articles published in the Harvard International Law Journal's volume 54(1). Over the next few days we will be presenting the responses, as well as commentary from...
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...
This week on Opinio Juris, it was too early for Talk Like a Pirate Day, but we certainly talked a lot about pirates. The reason of course was the Ninth Circuit's decision to agree with Japanese whalers that the Sea Shepherd's activities amount to piracy. Julian wasn't fully confident that "private ends" are broader than financial enrichment, and Kevin strongly...
As part of my new research interest in China and its relationship with the international legal system, I opened a Sina Weibo account a couple of weeks ago. And it has been quite an adventure. Weibo is China's version of Twitter and Facebook. Since both Twitter and Facebook are blocked within China, Weibo is the main social media platform for users...
If you're interested, the Duke Law, Ethics, and National Security Center is holding its annual conference - it's being livestreamed over the web, if you go to the webpage and click the link. The Chief Prosecutor, the Military Commissions, is giving the lunch talk at this moment. I'll be on a panel later today on autonomous weapons, Bill Banks moderating,...
Back in December, Peggy noted with sadness the shuttering of IntLawGrrls and the wonderful insights and coverage it had brought to the field of international law during its five-plus year run. Happily, it seems reports of IntLawGrrls' death were a bit exaggerated. Beginning this Sunday, IntLawGrrls will return to full activity, albeit with a new editorial structure (including my friend and colleague Jaya...
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 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...
[Jennifer Trahan is associate clinical professor at NYU’s Center for Global Affairs (NYU-SCPS). She is also chair of the American Branch of the International Law Association International Criminal Court Committee and was a member of the American Bar Association’s 2010 International Criminal Court Task Force.] A little-noticed event has taken place. Before he returned to Yale Law School, top State Department...
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...
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...
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...
