The government of Colombia and representatives of the FARC say they have reached a deal on land reform, one of the most contentious items in their protracted peace negotiations. Syria's foreign minister has said that his government will take part in a peace conference in Geneva, terming it a "good opportunity for a political solution" to the civil war in Syria. Though it is still too...
Calls for Papers A call for papers has been issued for a workshop and publication on "Natural resources grabbing: erosion or legitimate exercise of State sovereignty?” 4th and 5th October 2013 at the University of Cagliari (Sardinia, Italy). Deadline for submissions of abstracts is 15 June 2013. The growing demand for natural resources has triggered a “race” to their exploitation and possession, especially in developing...
Ahead of Barack Obama's speech on national security today, in a letter to Senator Patrick Leahy, US Attorney General Eric Holder admitted that the United States has killed four American citizens with drone strikes in Yemen and Pakistan. The British House of Commons has passed legislation for same-sex marriage; now the bill goes to the House of Lords for a vote. The...
Top officials from India and China met in New Delhi in an effort to ease tensions between the two countries, while a "special envoy" from North Korea visited Beijing in an effort to reinstate some diplomatic ties between the two nations. In related news, Japan has been considering restarting diplomatic talks with Pyongyang, with a focus on the abduction of Japanese...
In the latest twist on the case, Guatemala's highest court has overturned the May 10th genocide conviction against former dictator Efrain Rios Montt and reset his trial back to when a dispute broke out a month ago over who should hear the case. North Korea has released a Chinese fishing boat after having taken it from waters between the two nations. Pakistan's presumptive prime...
A senior Pentagon official told a Senate committee last week that the U.S. would be at war with al-Qaeda for 15 to 20 more years and said the military could target terrorists anywhere under the Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) passed in 2001 after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. After France won some goodwill throughout Mali during the five-month offensive against...
The UN General Assembly has voted to pass a resolution condemning the Syrian government for human rights violations and call for a transitional government. International donors pledged 3.25 billion euros ($4.22 billion) to help Mali recover from a conflict with al Qaeda-linked Islamists. A suicide bomber in a car targeted two vehicles carrying foreign forces in Kabul, Afghanistan. Three people were killed when...
The Japanese military's forced prostitution of Asian women before and during World War II was necessary to "maintain discipline" in the ranks and provide rest for soldiers, an outspoken nationalist mayor has said. Russia has ordered the expulsion of an alleged CIA agent working undercover at the US embassy who was discovered with a large stash of money trying to recruit a Russian...
UN Special Rapporteur Richard Falk urged Israel to stop construction of a highway that would cut off the local roads of Palestinian community Beit Safafa. A Swiss court is trying Belgians and Czechs in one of the biggest money laundering scandals dating back to central Europe's post-communist privatization boom. Major U.S. retailers including Gap Inc. declined to endorse an accord on Bangladesh building and fire...
Former Guatemalan dictator Efrain Rios Montt was found guilty of genocide, torture and rape of 1,771 indigenous Ixil Mayans during his rule in 1982-1983. Bangladeshi authorities have arrested Jamaat-e-Islami party leader AKM Yusuf on charges of crimes against humanity allegedly committed during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War. Taiwan's government has issued a 72-hour ultimatum to the Philippines' government, demanding an apology over the...
Calls for Papers In cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, the University of Johannesburg, South Africa, is hosting a conference on the legacy of the ICTR. The organizers are currently calling for papers. A short abstract must reach mswart@uj.ac.za by May 24, 2013. More information on the conference is available here. The University of Oslo is hosting a conference August 30-31, 2014 entitled: The Legitimacy and Effectiveness...
Another clothing factory has caught fire in Bangladesh, killing eight; this news comes after a recent factory collapse with a death toll now over 900, with both tragedies putting international safety standards in the spotlight. In other Bangladesh news, the war crimes tribunal is poised to hand down its fourth verdict today over a senior member of the Jamaat-e-Islami political party;...
