Opinio Juris » Weekday News Wrap w32/12

Weekday News Wrap: Friday, August 10, 2012

by Jessica Dorsey

The UK has appointed a senior judge to lead the inquest in the death of Russian ex-spy Litvinenko from polonium poising in 2006 in London.
Veteran international diplomat, Lakhdar Brahimi, has been tapped as Kofi Annan’s successor as UN-Arab League joint special envoy for Syria.
In the Syrian conflict, government troops have forced rebels from a key district in the city of Aleppo.
In response to the PILPG memo featured in our Weekday News Wrap on Wednesday, the New International Law Blog offers an analysis posing the question: Would intervention in Syria violate under international law?
The Libyan Assembly has picked former opposition leader Mohammed Magarief as its new President.
The South Korean President has created a diplomatic row with Japan after visiting two disputed island, claimed by both states.
In light of the recent rise in piracy, the UN has voiced its support for an international summit to discuss maritime security, which will take place before the end of the year.
The United States has made it clear it does not think that Iran is on the verge of building a nuclear weapon or that Tehran is trying to pursue one.
Australia’s Navy has rescued 211 asylum seekers off the coast of Indonesia. Those rescued were Sri Lankan, Iranian, Pakistani and Afghani.
Dutch auto manufacturer Spyker NV has filed a lawsuit against GM in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan for $3 billion, alleging that GM deliberately drove Saab (which Spyker purchased from GM in 2010) into bankruptcy with tortuous interference in a transaction with Chinese investors.

August 10th, 2012 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2012/08/10/weekday-news-wrap-friday-august-10-2012/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Thursday, August 9, 2012

by Jessica Dorsey

According to the UN, Afghanistan civilan deaths are down for the first time since it started counting in 2007, though officials say that this is due to an extremely harsh winter rather than improved security. The United Nations also reports that targeted killings in Afghanistan have risen 53%.
Ex-British Prime Minister Tony Blair has expressed his deep concern that the UK will leave the European Union in a referendum.
In other statements from former heads of state, France’s Nicholas Sarkozy has called for a humanitarian intervention in Syria.
Syrian troops have pushed back rebel forces in Aleppo and as the conflict worsens, doubts arise as to who may replace Kofi Annan as peace envoy. Foreign Policy talks about the winners and losers of Syria’s civil war.
Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, has appointed a new prime minister after the defection of Riad Hijab earlier this week.
Yesterday, leaders from central African states failed to reach an agreement about how best to structure a neutral force to battle the insurgency in eastern Congo.
According to the UN, 655,000 people have been displaced as a result of fighting between government and rebel forces in the south of the country.
In Vietnam, the United States has begun the first cleanup of Agent Orange, a toxic chemical used in the Vietnam War by the United States, killing or maiming an estimated 400,000 and causing approximately 500,000 children to be born with defects.

August 9th, 2012 - 8:00 AM EDT | 1 Comment » http://opiniojuris.org/2012/08/09/weekday-news-wrap-thursday-august-9-2012/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Wednesday, August 8, 2012

by Jessica Dorsey

Oxfam reports that hundreds are being raped and killed in Eastern Congo as the army’s deployment to fight rebels has created a security vacuum.
The International Criminal Court announced its decision on providing reparations to victims in the case of Thomas Lubanga Dyilo. IntLawGrrls offers two posts (here and here) with commentary about the decision.
Foreign Policy offers more insight into the Chinese fishermen captured by Sri Lanka.
Uganda’s air force has been deployed to pursue al-Qaeda linked militants in Somalia.
Now a total of eight Olympic athletes from Cameroon have disappeared from the Olympic Games and many speculate that they’ve done so in order to claim asylum in Great Britain or elsewhere in the European Union.
The Public International Law and Policy Group has released a policy memorandum citing the doctrine of the Responsibility to Protect to lay out the legal basis for humanitarian intervention options in Syria.
Reuters offers an insight about Syrian rebels expecting to run into trouble with foreign rebel fighters in the future, with one rebel commander stating: “Let me be clear. I am an Islamist, my fighters are Islamists. But there is more than one type of Islamist,” and outlining that different allied groups may want different things after the regime of Al-Assad.
Over at Arms Control Blog, there is a post analyzing whether the US or Israel can legally attack Iran’s nuclear facilities using the grounds of anticipatory self-defense.
The Leiden Law Blog features more food-for-thought about Yale’s new PhD in law program, a topic about which Kevin recently blogged here.
Egypt has launched air raids on islamist militants in Sinai, as revenge for the killing of Egyptian border agents over the weekend.
The US is calling upon Bangladesh not to cut off NGOs that want to provide humanitarian aid to the Rohingya population fleeing ethnic violence in Myanmar.
China has further restricted production of rare earths; a step that may further stoke tensions with the US and the EU.
Belarus has pulled its embassy staff from Sweden over the dropping of teddy bears bearing pro-democracy messages in early July.
According to documents unsealed on Tuesday, Academi, formerly known as Blackwater, has agreed in a ‘deferred prosecution agreement’ to pay a $7.5m fine for arms exporting and trafficking violations.

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Weekday News Wrap: Tuesday, August 7, 2012

by Jessica Dorsey

Syrian Prime Minister Riyad Hijab has defected from what he terms the “terrorist regime” of President Bashar al-Assad, while violence rages on in Aleppo. IPS offers an insight into what these high-level defections mean for Syria’s future.
Syria is also losing support of its ally Iran, whose Foreign Minister will visit Turkey today to discuss the situation in Syria and the capture of Iranian nationals.
Hilary Clinton is visiting South Africa, where Syria will also be on the agenda.
Also in South Africa, former Irish President and former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinson has criticized the ANC for its eroded moral authority after a string of corruption scandals and the proposed officials secrets legislation.
UNAMID peacekeepers report increased violence in Sudan’s Darfur region, with reports of four killed and 600 injured since last Wednesday.
Sri Lanka continues to hold 37 Chinese fisherman for trial it accuses of fishing illegally in Sri Lankan waters, which contradicts Chinese media reports that they had been released.
The Philippines’ ratification of the Domestic Workers Convention brings the treaty into legal force.
Foreign Policy outlines how aid given by the United States is actually helping human rights violators and how this can be stopped.
Having reached an interim agreement on fees to transfer South Sudanese oil via Sudan, the two parties will resume negotiations on August 26.
Is the Eurozone crisis descending into a war of words? Recent comments would suggest so.
The Washington Post has an article describing the US’ successful track record winning WTO cases against China, but also focusing on the difficulties enforcing the decisions and affecting real change in Chinese trade practices.

August 7th, 2012 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2012/08/07/weekday-news-wrap-tuesday-august-7-2012/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Monday, August 6, 2012

by Jessica Dorsey

Rebels have reported that they are coming under heavy attacks in Syria’s Aleppo.
Chinese media have told the United States to “shut up” about the dispute in the South China Sea and accusing the US of exacerbating tensions in the region.
19 people are dead after Kurdish rebels attacked military outposts in Turkey over the weekend.
Israel barred the envoys of four state parties with which it has no diplomatic relations and as a result, the conference of the Non-Aligned Movement scheduled to take place in the West Bank was cancelled.
The confirmation of charges hearing has been postponed in the case against Laurent Gbagbo by the ICC’s Pre-Trial Chamber.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinijad has been invited to an extraordinary solidarity summit among Muslim leaders in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.
Foreign Policy in Focus offers a context piece about the current standoff in Mali.
Marking the anniversary of the Hiroshima atomic bomb, Japan is calling on all countries to abandon nuclear weapons.
Sweden says that Belarus has expelled its ambassador because he is too supportive of human rights. Belarus claims that it has only refused to extend his accreditation.
Israel has upgraded its anti-ballistic missile system.

August 6th, 2012 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2012/08/06/weekday-news-wrap-monday-august-6-2012/ |