• US President Barack Obama spoke in Seoul today, promising to pursue nuclear cuts, an issue he will push in a May meeting slated with incoming Russian President Vladimir Putin.
• Pakistan’s legislators are debating ties with the US, specifically with respect to re-opening NATO supply routes that have been closed since a US attack killed 24 soldiers in Pakistan last November.
• Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadenijad stated today that the US and NATO can no longer dictate policy for the rest of the world and that NATO relations with Pakistan will continue to deteriorate.
• The families of the 17 Afghans killed in a massacre allegedly carried out by a US soldier now awaiting trial have received compensation from the US government.
• On the heels of the viral #Kony2012 campaign, the African Union announced that it will send 5,000 troops to assist American military advisors in the search for the LRA leader, Joseph Kony.
• Previously undisclosed files from the 1988 Lockerbie bombing in Scotland have been published (full report found here), despite data protection laws keeping them from the public eye.
• The US will appeal the WTO ruling on country-of-origin labels (COOL) on meat.
• Guatemalan President Otto Perez Molina pushed for decriminalization of drugs, stating that the war on drugs has failed and there is a need for a new approach from Latin American countries to combat drug trafficking.
• Human Rights Watch reports that civilians are being used as human shields in Syria, and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev warns that the plan put forth by Kofi Annan is the last hope of avoiding a full-scale civil war, before pledging Russia’s “full support at any level” to the UN.
• There has been much discussion about US President Obama’s pick for the World Bank presidency. Forbes’ take: here. Over the weekend, Jeffrey Sachs withdrew his nomination, leaving three to vie for the institution’s top spot.
• Following the military coup last week in Mali, relative calm has returned to the nation.
• Reuters reports that in Baghdad, al-Qaeda has been ruling the streets since the withdrawal of US troops from the country and residents still fear for their lives.
• The EU has named 17 Iranians against whom sanctions have been levied in response to alleged human rights violations. The list now comprises 78 Iranians subject to asset freezes and travel bans.
• The Russian-backed breakaway Georgian region of South Ossetia, has voted to elect its first president.
• China reportedly will end its program of organ donation from executed prisoners within three to five years.
• In ASIL news: many of our contributors and readers will be at this year’s event in Washington, D.C. If you’re unable to attend and are interested in following the events from a live blog, check the ASIL Cables here.

• The International Court of Justice issued two press releases about upcoming hearings in both the Frontier Dispute (Burkina Faso/Niger), scheduled for October 8-17, 2012; and the Maritime Dispute (Peru v. Chile), scheduled for December 3-14, 2012.
• Reuters reports a three-way scramble for the upcoming World Bank presidential elections, with American economist Jeffrey Sachs registered as a candidate. African finance ministers have backed Nigerian, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala for the post, and officials have just confirmed her candidacy as well. Though his name has been pushed by Brazil, Colombia does not see former finance minister Jose Antonio Ocampo’s candidacy as viable. We will keep you updated on the developments.
• More context on the IMF and World Bank job quota system provided by Washington Post here.
• Israel’s Foreign Minister is considering removal of Israel’s ambassador to the UN’s Human Rights Council over its establishing a fact-finding mission into the effects of settlements on Palestinian human rights.
• EU considers excluding foreign companies from public procurement bidding if their home countries are suspected of excluding bids from European firms.
• Despite a UN call for a ceasefire, clashes flare across Syria.
• International reaction to the coup in Mali condemns the rebels and calls it a setback for democracy in Africa; the World Bank and the African Development Bank cut off aid, and the UN and African Union voice concerns. Foreign Policy poses the question: are coups making a comeback?
• Following the foiling of another plot to bomb a tourist nightclub in Bali, where five suspected terrorists were killed, an analysis shows that terrorist plots are on the rise in Indonesia.
• Brazil considers duties permitted under the WTO as insufficient in the face of “currency dumping”
• The US soldier who allegedly carried out the massacre in Afghanistan, killing 17 civilians, will be charged. The Afghan Taliban, who have no faith in any judicial proceeding for the suspect, have vowed to take revenge for the killings.
• A referendum in Slovenia, scheduled for vote this Sunday, will decide whether to allow those in same-sex relationships seeking to adopt their partner’s children.
• An AP piece outlines why North Korea’s rocket launch matters.
• In other LGBT and children’s rights news, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights ruled that Chile was wrong to revoke child custody based on sexual orientation.
• Foreign policy reports on the continued brutality in the streets of Bahrain following protests linked to the Arab Spring.

That’s it for our first week of our new feature, the Weekday News Wrap. We hope you are enjoying it. If there’s an event you’d like to see in our coverage, let us know. Keep your eye on Opinio Juris for the Weekend Roundup, a recap of all that’s happened this week on the blog, coming tomorrow!

• In a military coup, soldiers have claimed to have overthrown the president of Mali, Amadou Toumani Toure.
• Libya resists ICC’s custody claims in cases against Seif al-Islam el-Qaddafi and Abdullah Senussi.
• Al-Qaeda has taken responsibility for dozens of bombings across Iraq, which have killed at least 52, leading up to the Arab League summit in Baghdad.
• China’s Justice Ministry has ordered all lawyers to pledge their allegiance to the Communist Party.
• All 15 of the UN Security Council members backed Kofi Annan’s peace plan for crackdown on the violence enveloping the country. In Syria-related sanctions, the EU aims to put a travel and shopping ban on President al-Assad’s wife Asma, in addition to other steps they have already taken against the nation.
• South Africa urges the EU to suspend the airline carbon scheme while the NY Times reports that the carbon plan could pay off for airlines.
• In response to the US move to lift financial sanctions on 11 countries who have significantly cut oil purchases from Iran, China slams the US’ position, calling it “misguided and selfish.”
• Columbian troops killed at least 39 members of the FARC last night in a raid happening days before an impending hostage release from the insurgent group.
• Italy’s Supreme Court ruled that even though a same-sex couple who married outside of Italy cannot be considered as legally wed in the country, they do have a “right to family life,” potentially opening doors to ending the Italian ban on same-sex marriage.
• Myanmar has invited foreign observers from the US and the EU to monitor upcoming elections.
• Somali pirates freed a British hostage after she was kidnapped and held for over six-months.
• 17 Chevron and Transocean employees were charged with environmental crimes following an oil spill off the coast of Brazil last November.

• Mauritania has agreed to extradite ex-Libyan chief-of-intelligence Abdullah al-Senussi to Libya.
• The Economist outlines the world’s biggest arms exporters based on a new report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
• US President Barack Obama is slated to visit the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea today ahead of his upcoming visit with South Korean president, Lee Meyung-Bak.
• Western powers diluted the language of a U.N. Security Council resolution regarding Syria in order to garner Russian support; in response, speaking from Jakarta, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon once again urged an international response to the violence in Syria and warned of ‘massive repercussions’ for the world if the international community does not act.
• The Palestinian Authority has asked the U.N.’s Human Rights Council to investigate the impact of Israeli settlements in the occupied territories.
• Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that Iran would attack to defend itself if the United States or Israel were to show aggression toward the nation.
• Saudi Arabia may include women on its Olympic team, potentially making the Summer Games in London a watershed event, where every participating nation features at least one female athlete.
• The US exempted 10 EU countries and Japan from sanctions as they have significantly cut crude oil purchases from Iran, but this move leaves China and India exposed. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has a statement here.
• Israel has asked to clear out its embassy in Cairo, highlighting growing tensions since the ousting of Hosni Mubarak last year.
• Jurist covers the ACLU’s petition filed yesterday with the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights on behalf of Afghan and Iraqi citizens who were allegedly tortured while being detained by American military.
• The Kony 2012 campaign and the ICC’s recent verdict in the Lubanga case have put the issue of child soldiers back on the international agenda, reports The Guardian.

• Amnesty International says that NATO failed in its obligation to investigate or provide compensation for deaths in Lybia during its seven-month operation last year.
• A court in Zimbabwe convicted six activists of trying to unseat Robert Mugabe through Arab Spring-like protests. The convicted men face up to 10 years in prison.
• India may follow China’s example and ask its airlines not to participate in the EU carbon scheme.
• New calls for the end of US drone strikes came from a Pakistani parliamentary committee, the latest in a string of measures since a November 26th attack killed 24 Pakistani soldiers. In other drone news, Jack Goldsmith opines at Foreign Policy about the legality of the use of drones in the conflict with al-Qaeda.
• ICRC President Jacob Kellenberger met yesterday with Russian foreign affairs minister, Sergei Lavrov to discuss the humanitarian situation in Syria. Bloomberg covers the meeting here.
• Peru cancelled a British Royal Navy visit out of solidarity with Argentina in its dispute with the UK over the Faulkland Islands.
• Convicted Khmer Rouge jailer Duch testifies against his former bosses in Cambodia. This comes one day after Swiss judge Laurent Kasper-Ansermet resigned from the bench of the ECCC citing interference. Jurist has more on the resignation here.
• In a re-trial, a military court in Egypt has acquitted eight, among others Ayman al-Zawarihi’s brother, on terrorism charges.
• The suspect in the March 11th Afghan massacre of 16 civilians claims he doesn’t remember the incident.
• China and North Korea met for the second time to discuss North Korea’s impending rocket launch and the UN confirms that the IAEA has been invited to North Korea for the first time in three years.

In addition to its recently introduced Weekend Roundup, Opinio Juris is pleased to offer you the Weekday News Wrap. This Monday-through-Friday feature aims to offer a selection of news items from around the world related to many topics of interest on the blog. As usual, feedback is very welcome and we wish you happy reading!

• The first ITLOS judgment on maritime delimitation was issued last Wednesday (ITLOS press release). Commentary here and Dapo Akande discussion of the timing of the decision, coming on the same day as the ICC’s Lubanga decision, here.
• The United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon says that at least 8,000 are dead in Syria and urged an end to the violence.
• Despite criticism of the rocket technology it will use, North Korea plans to go ahead with its satellite launch, citing its sovereign right of “peaceful development and use of space.”
• The WTO appellate body ruled that US subsidies to Boeing are illegal; the ICTSD reports on the decision here.
• Javier Solana discusses sovereignty at Project Syndicate.
• A cache of approximately 3,000 e-mails were leaked to The Guardian from insiders from the Syrian regime, including President Bashar al-Assad and his wife. Foreign Policy Passport gives a guide to reading them here.
• Jurist reports about the US sending Afghan detainees to prisons known for torture.
• Abdullah al-Senussi, the former Libyan chief-of-intelligence, has been arrested in Mauritania. The ICC, the Libyan National Transitional Council, and France have all requested his custody.
• The L.A. Times reports on the psychological strain drone crews face.
• Afghan president, Hamid Karzai, calls for a US troop withdrawal by the end of next year, previously scheduled for the end of 2014.
• The NY Times reports that Ethiopian forces stormed into Eritrea and the clashes are stirring new tensions between the two countries.
• Invisible Children’s production, Kony 2012, was screened in Uganda and stirred anger amongst viewers.
• With all the hype stirred up by Hollywood stars surrounding the Kony 2012 campaign and activities in Darfur, Foreign Policy takes a look at the phenomenon of “Celebretarian Intervention.”