Opinio Juris » Weekday News Wrap w23/12

Weekday News Wrap: Friday, June 8, 2012

by Jessica Dorsey

UN Human Rights Chief Navi Pillay has argued that US drone strikes in Pakistan raises legal questions.
China has promised “sincere and selfless” help to Afghanistan, committing to increasing aid, investment and security cooperation.
In other news about China, it has also introduced new legislation to restrict internet use.
Sudan and South Sudan have called off their peace talks with no deal in sight.
Sudanese President Omar al Bashir is being forced to cancel travel plans to next month’s AU summit in Malawi, given the outstanding warrant for his arrest by the ICC.
Ivory Coast’s former President Laurent Gbagbo seeks a delay of his trial at the ICC, claiming he is too ill.
ECOWAS has urged the UN Security Council for a Chapter VII resolution authorizing intervention in Mali if talks with rebel groups fail.
Jurist has a piece about Charles Taylor, Arms Dealers and Reparations.
UN monitors in Syria were shot at while trying to investigate a massacre site, and Kofi Annan has said that an “all-out civil war” is imminent.
Australia will lift the remaining sanctions on Myanmar and double its aid contribution to the country.
At Lawfare, our own Ken Anderson sits down with Benjamin Wittes to talk about his new book, Living with the UN. You can listen to the podcast here.
Foreign Policy offers a photo report of the remaining Blue Helmets, the UN Peacekeeping Forces.
Gay Danish couples have won the right to marry in church.
Bloomberg has an article on tit-for-tat Chinese litigation at the WTO.
After reaching agreement with Ukraine, Laos is on the home stretch towards WTO Membership. Yemen still needs to reach an agreement with Ukraine.
One correction to yesterday’s news pointed out by a careful reader: the North Korean caste system story was reported by the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea (HRNK), rather than Human Rights Watch.

June 8th, 2012 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2012/06/08/weekday-news-wrap-friday-june-8-2012/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Thursday, June 7, 2012

by Jessica Dorsey

The brother of Abu Yahya al-Libi (the militant allegedly killed by a drone strike earlier this week), claims that the US’ drone program is inhumane and makes a mockery of the US claims of upholding human rights standards. IPS offers an opinion piece about how drones fire both ways.
In what could have been retaliation for the killing of Abu Yahya al-Libi, a bomb has exploded outside the US mission in Benghazi, Libya.
Slate has an Explainer column discussing how hard it is to shoot down a drone.
The Sentencing Judgment in the Charles Taylor case is now available online. In light of the recent conviction and sentencing of Charles Taylor, Foreign Policy asks: Are war crimes trials worth the price?
As the UN met yesterday to discuss measures for Syria, a new massacre was reported to have happened near Hama.
The US has offered up to $7 million dollars for information leading to the capture of Al-Shabaab leaders in Somalia. More information can be found on the Rewards for Justice site.
The Guardian has an article on the growing campaign in South Africa against the protection of state information bill.
Russia is set to join the WTO later this year, but an EU report reveals that many Russian regulations still need to be brought in compliance with the future WTO obligations.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon has submitted his first report to the Security Council on the alleged crimes of Joseph Kony, the rebel leader accused of conscripting child soldiers among other war crimes. The report can be found here.
Judges from the ICTY have travelled to various sites relevant to the indictment of Radovan Karadzic, including the Srebrenica massacre site.
Lawfare points out that all the living Republican former Secretaries of State have penned a joint op-ed in the Wall Street Journal about why the US should ratify the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Europe ranks as the best continent to live for LGBTI people, though discrimination problems remain.
Human Rights Watch reports that the caste system in place in North Korea leads to human rights violations such as abuse and arbitrary detention.
Human Rights Watch also reports that militias from Liberia are attacking the Ivory Coast.

June 7th, 2012 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2012/06/07/weekday-news-wrap-thursday-june-7-2012/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Wednesday, June 6, 2012

by Jessica Dorsey

More news in targeted strikes, complementing our book symposium this week: US officials claim that Abu Yahyi al-Libi, a high-level al-Qaeda militant, was killed in a CIA drone strike in northern Pakistan yesterday, despite Pakistan’s urging the US to stop the targeted killing program.
A strike in Afghanistan aimed at a top-level official killed him as well as six Taliban fighters nearby but also killed 16 others, including women and children.
The Guardian reports on warnings by a former CIA counter-terrorism official that the US drone attacks are too indiscriminate and can give rise to political instability and anti-US sentiment that creates a safe haven for terrorists.
The Miami Herald has an op-ed on the President Obama as “hitman-in-chief.”
The Organization of American States put off a vote about a contentious reform of its human rights panel, following criticism from a number of states.
The Prosecutor of the ICC, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, called on the Security Council to help execute ICC arrest warrants. When Sudan’s UN Ambassador objected to ICC Prosecutor Moreno-Ocampo in the UN Security Council, Moreno-Ocampo fired back that the ambassador’s denial of war crimes would be investigated to see if they are part of the crimes.
Leaders of the G7 promised to assist in a speedy crisis response for the Eurozone. Foreign Policy asks: is it too late to stop Europe’s impending economic disaster?
Syria has agreed to let in humanitarian assistance, according to the UN, even as the government is expelling foreign diplomats.
IntLawGrrls has a piece detailing perhaps a softening of opponents of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.Global Issues has a backgrounder on the US ratification debate on the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, on which we will host a discussion next week.
Amnesty International has issued a report calling on Israel to release Palestinians detained without trial.
China and Russia have signed a joint communique committing them to more strategic cooperation.
Chinese officials have told foreign embassies to stop publishing data on air pollution in the major Chinese cities.

June 6th, 2012 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2012/06/06/weekday-news-wrap-wednesday-6-june-2012/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Tuesday, June 5, 2012

by Jessica Dorsey

More today about targeted killing, to complement our book symposia: The US’ targeting of senior al-Qaeda leaders is straining relations with Pakistan, and Pakistan has condemned the most recent US drone strikes. Foreign Policy offers a look at the top Pakistani diplomat charged with renewing a good rapport with the US.
The G7 will hold emergency talks about the Eurozone today.
Talks between Sudan and South Sudan have begun, but not before the fighting has caused 35,000 refugees to flee from Sudan to South Sudan.
The UN Human Rights Council has called for a special investigation into the Houla Massacre in Syria.
Foreign Policy offers an op-ed about the real reason to intervene in Syria.
It’s a busy week for diplomacy with Russian President Putin in China for security talks, US Defense Secretary Panetta in India and the EU’s Foreign Policy Chief Ashton travelling to Pakistan to launch the EU-Pakistan Strategic Dialogue.
China’s ambassador to the UN denies that China is protecting Syrian President Assad and urges all parties to the conflict to implement Kofi Annan’s six points peace plan.
Serbia’s new President Nikolic has denied that there was a genocide in Srebrenica, in comments that could threaten the fragile process of reconciliation in the Balkan.
New Zealand has signed a partnership deal with NATO.
A Danish Court has sentenced four men to 12 years in prison for planning a terrorist attack on newspaper offices in revenge for the publication of the Muhammed cartoons in 2005.

June 5th, 2012 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2012/06/05/weekday-news-wrap-tuesday-june-5-2012/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Monday, June 4, 2012

by Jessica Dorsey

Perhaps as a good primer to our upcoming book discussion this week, a few drone-related news items: Despite Pakistan’s requests to the US to stop the program, the third drone strike in Pakistan in as many days has taken its toll on new victims; irrespective of the method of civilian or combatant counting, there are at least 27 dead.
The Washington Post points out that drone strikes in Yemen raise legal questions.
Canada has come out in support of the US’ use of drones.
The UN Committee on Torture has condemned Canada for complicity in torture of its own citizens abroad, in its latest report.
Spurred by the recent events surrounding the Pakistani doctor who helped the US with finding Osama bin Laden, Reuters has a piece detailing the relationship between the US and Pakistan as allies without trust.
Foreign Policy has a rebuttal about the Yale class taught by retired General Stanley McChrystal, a topic about which Kevin Jon Heller posted last week.
The alleged ringleader of a Colombian cocaine cartel, Diego Perez Henao, has been arrested by Venezuelan armed forces near the Colombia-Venezuela border.
Syrian President Assad has condemned the massacre in Houla and has promised that the violence will end if Syrians pull together. He has denied involvement in the massacre.
Regarding the Syria situation, Foreign Policy in Focus has called for an intervention…with Russia.
CNN provides more about upcoming diplomatic efforts in Syria.
The US Ambassador to France has marked the 68th anniversary of D-Day with a mass parachute jump in Normandy.
The 23rd anniversary of the crackdown on the Tiananmen Square is creating overtime for the Chinese censors.
BBC reports that one of the remaining members still at large of the cult responsible for the 1995 sarin nerve gas attacks on the Tokyo subway has been arrested.
On Friday, a large majority of Irish voters favored ratifying the European Fiscal Pact. Meanwhile, Germany is pushing for closer fiscal integration in Europe.
Human Rights Watch has called for Rwanda to stop aiding Bosco Ntaganda, suspected of war crimes and with an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court, with recruits and weapons.
The Taliban is allegedly prohibiting refugees from leaving, thereby setting up human shields in Peshawar, Pakistan.

June 4th, 2012 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2012/06/04/weekday-news-wrap-monday-june-4-2012/ |