Opinio Juris » weekday news wrap w39/12

Weekday News Wrap: Friday, September 28, 2012

by Jessica Dorsey

According to a Kenyan military spokesman, Kenyan forces have captured the Somali port city of Kismayo, a bastion for Al-Shabbab fighters.
At the UN General Assembly, China’s foreign minister accused Japan of stealing the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu islands.
Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas has said he will seek a vote on an upgraded status for Palestine to non-member state, like The Vatican, from the UN General Assembly.
At the UN, Tunisia’s President has called for the creation of an International Constitutional Court with the power to declare domestic laws unconstitutional when they do not comply with international law, and to recommend constitutional revisions. But, with China once again expressing its commitment to a strict principle of non-interference in internal affairs, the idea of a new ICC is likely to be short-lived.
In a rare appearance, former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl made a plea for European unity in the face of adversity surrounding the Euro currency and other recent issues.
A Dutch court ruled Wednesday that three Congolese who testified as witnesses at the International Criminal Court against Germain Katanga can seek asylum in The Netherlands.
On a visit to Brazil, British PM David Cameron is pushing an anti-protectionist message and called for an expansion in bilateral trade between the two nations.
Zimbabwe’s President Mugabe is intending to have a referendum on a new constitution as early as November, even though no draft has yet been agreed with the opposition, and parliamentary elections in March 2013.

September 28th, 2012 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2012/09/28/weekday-news-wrap-friday-september-28-2012/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Thursday, September 27, 2012

by Jessica Dorsey

Japan has promised that it will not compromise on the dispute over the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands, calling them an integral part to the country’s territory. It did not take very long for China to react.
The High Court of England and Wales issued an injunction against the extradition to the United States of Islamic cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri and Saudi-born Khaled al-Fawwaz despite a recent ruling from the European Court of Human Rights approving their extradition.
UN members seemed deeply divided yesterday on what to do about the worsening conflict in Mali, with some urging military intervention and others requiring an elected government before taking the next step.
Colombia’s President Juan Manuel Santos has stated he hopes for a peace agreement with the FARC rebels by 2013.
Also at the UN General Assembly meeting yesterday, many members questioned the efficacy of the US-led war on drugs and urged a renewed global debate about anti-narcotics laws.
The president of Yemen, Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, offered dialogue to militant Islamist groups including al-Qaeda conditioned upon putting down their weapons and ceasing to accept support from abroad.
Norway has begun its first trial involving a suspect accused of involvement in the 1994 Rwanda genocide.
Sudan and South Sudan will sign a “protocol of collaboration”, but it does not completely settle all disputes between them and does not demarcate their borders.
Equatorial Guinea has asked the ICJ for an order against France over the latter’s investigation of embezzlement by the African state’s second vice-President, the son of the current President.

September 27th, 2012 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2012/09/27/weekday-news-wrap-thursday-september-27-2012/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Wednesday, September 26, 2012

by Jessica Dorsey

Two explosions have occurred near Syrian military headquarters in Damascus.
Hours before these two explosions, a Qatari emir said that Arabs must intervene in Syria in the absence of Security Council action.
Foreign Policy offers an insight into a report about the torture tactics used by the government of Syria and their effects on children–sometimes with the children being the victims of the torture themselves.
On the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting in New York, the Chinese and Japanese Foreign Ministers have held a meeting over the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands. The Japanese minister described the meeting as “severe”.
In an interview with AP, Iranian President Ahmadinejad has pushed for a new world order. He also proposed the creation of a group of 10-11 countries to address the civil war in Syria.
Iran has condemned the US’ removal of the MEK group from its list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
China has launched its first aircraft carrier, but it is still to develop a plane that can actually land on it.
Argentina’s President has rejected IMF’s criticism about the unreliability of Argentina’s economic data.
The EU has challenged US claims that the latter has fully complied with the WTO ruling on Boeing’s subsidies.
The world’s largest Muslim organization, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, has called for a halt to expressions of “islamophobia” and for these to be curbed by law, in the same way that some countries punish holocaust denial and anti-semitism.

September 26th, 2012 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2012/09/26/weekday-news-wrap-wednesday-september-26-2012/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Tuesday, September 25, 2012

by Jessica Dorsey

As Ken already pointed out in his post, the UN General Assembly meeting officially opens today in New York.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Egypt’s President Mohammed Morsi have met in New York to improve US-Egypt relations and to discuss embassy security following the riots after the controversial anti-Islam video.
It’s getting busy around the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands, with Taiwanese fishermen and the Coast Guard briefly entering the 12 nautical mile zone around the islands, before being chased away by the Japanese Coast Guard’s water cannons.
After three years of waiting, Canada will ask the WTO to establish a Panel to examine the 2009 EU ban on trade in seal products.
A federal court in Australia has found Lehman Brothers liable for damages in a class-action lawsuit relation to the sale of mortgage-backed securities, launched by a collective of non-profits that had invested based on the incorrect AAA-rating of the investment products.
The UK and Canada have concluded an agreement to share embassy facilities abroad. The move creates questions about the UK’s commitment to the EU’s efforts on an External Action Service.
Israel’s defense minister, Ehud Barak, said Israel should consider a unilateral pullback from Gaza even if peace negotiations are out of reach, a standpoint quickly shot down by President Benjamin Netanyahu.
Germany seeks the extradition of an 87-year-old man living in Philadelphia for his alleged involvement as an SS officer at Auschwitz concentration camp during the Second World War.
The European Court of Human Rights has rejected UK-based Muslim cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri’s appeal to stop his extradition to the United States.
In light of the removal of MEK from the United States’ list of foreign terrorist organizations, Foreign Policy offers some clarification on when a terrorist no longer is a terrorist.
The United Nations has launched an online platform that will allow countries to share their post-conflict transition experiences, and learn from policies and peacebuilding strategies put in place by nations who have undergone similar changes.

September 25th, 2012 - 8:00 AM EDT | 1 Comment » http://opiniojuris.org/2012/09/25/weekday-news-wrap-tuesday-september-25-2012/ |

Weekday News Wrap: Monday, September 24, 2012

by Jessica Dorsey

Leaders of Sudan and South Sudan met late Sunday to discuss borders and oil exports peace negotiations between the two countries have not yet finalized, with a breakthrough in security negotiations not yet reached.
Syria’s internal opposition met in Damascus amid airstrikes calling for a cessation of hostilities.
A day after China called off celebrations on the 40th anniversary of Japanese-Chinese relations, it has sent three ships to patrol the waters around the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea. Despite protests, experts say that military conflict is not likely between the two countries.
Apple has sought a sales ban on Samsung products it claims infringe on its patents, along with $707 million in damages.
Iran has vowed to strike US bases in Qatar, Afghanistan and Bahrain if Israel were to launch an attack.
Iran has also readied a domestic internet network and blocked sites like Google and GMail in a bid, according to officials, to improve cyber-security, but many Iranians fear this is really a way to curtail their access to the web.
Foreign Policy offers a post about the recent protests in Catalonia calling for independence from Spain. The EU has said that any breakaway state must apply for entry to the EU, just like any other state.
In New Zealand, the case against Megaupload’s founder Kim Dotcom, wanted by the US for internet piracy and copyright violations, has possibly been dealt another blow after the Prime Minister ordered an investigation into allegations that the arrests were made possible by the unlawful interception of communications by the Government Communications Security Bureau.
India is moving ahead with the preparations for its WTO consultations request against the US for the latter’s increase in visa fees for professionals, which India argues is discriminatory against Indian IT firms that want to send employees to the US on short-term contracts.
The US Senate has approved a bill that allows the US Transport Secretary to stop US airlines from complying with EU rules on participation by international airlines in the EU Emissions Trading System. An amendment provides for an exception in case of an amendment of the EU’s regulation, an international solution or a domestic US system.
In further air transport news, Boeing has said that the US has now taken all steps necessary to comply with the WTO ruling on aircraft subsidies.
Siemens has denied Iranian claims that it has hidden explosive devices in nuclear material, adding that it hasn’t traded with Iran since 1979.

September 24th, 2012 - 8:00 AM EDT | Comments Off http://opiniojuris.org/2012/09/24/weekday-news-wrap-monday-september-24-2012/ |