Middle East

Introduction  The 1988 political prisoner massacre (the massacre, the 1988 massacre) in Iran occurred almost 35 years ago. Yet its relevance remains visible in contemporary debates on Iran’s human rights record, the legitimacy of the government, and the human rights credentials of its leaders. Most importantly, it remains an unresolved issue worthy of investigative and judicial attention for the victims, survivors,...

[Ahmed Abofoul is a Legal Researcher and Advocacy Officer at Al-Haq’s International Legal Research and Advocacy Department.] Introduction 2021 was an exceptionally difficult year for the Palestinians on both sides of the green line, where Israel’s oppressive practices intensified to unprecedented levels. It was the deadliest year for Palestinian children since 2014. Throughout 2021, Palestinians in the occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) –...

[Dr Caroline Sweeney is a lecturer in International Human Rights Law with a particular research interest in the intersection between international law and international politics in Syria. She has published on accountability for international crimes committed in Syria since 2011.] On 13 January 2022, the Higher Regional Court in Koblenz, Germany convicted Anwar Raslan, a former Syrian intelligence officer, of the...

Call for Papers Call for Papers - Palestine Yearbook of International Law (UPDATED): The Palestine Yearbook of International Law (PYBIL) has opened an invitation for a round of submissions for Volume XXIV by 31 March 2022. We are interested in particular in critical approaches to public international law, and welcome submissions in relation to Palestine. In addition, the PYBIL welcomes articles on critical...

Announcements Book launch on René Provost, Rebel Courts – The Administration of Justice by Armed Insurgents (Oxford UP 2021) organised by the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights on 1 December 2021 at 11h30-13h00 EST on Zoom: The new book Rebel Courts by Professor René Provost (McGill University) discusses the administration of justice by armed groups. Based on extensive fieldwork, it offers a...

[Anne Herzberg is the Legal Advisor of NGO Monitor and the UN Representative for the Institute for NGO Research.] On November 2, 2021, Tara Van Ho, Senior Lecturer at Essex University, posted “The Unexpected Trade and Business Implications of Israel’s Attack on Al Haq” at Opinio Juris. In the piece, Van Ho condemns Israel’s designation of six Palestinian NGOs for their...

[Nora Salem is Assistant Professor, Head of the Public International Law Department at the German University in Cairo and Human Rights Law Reporter for Oxford Reports on International Law. She has recently published an entry for the MPEPIL on Sharia Reservations to Human Rights Treaties, as well as a book on The Impact of the UN Women’s Rights Convention on Egypt’s Domestic Legislation (Brill).] In Palestine’s...

Call for Papers Call for Submission - Trade, Law, and Development: The Board of Editors of Trade, Law and Development is pleased to invite original, unpublished manuscripts for publication in the Special Issue of the Journal (Vol. XIV, No. 1) in the form of ‘Articles’, ‘Notes’, ‘Comments’ and ‘Book Reviews’, focusing on the theme “Looking Ahead: Addressing the Challenges Faced by the International Trade Regime”. Manuscripts...

[Ahmed Abofoul is an Independent Legal Researcher at Al-Haq’s Legal Research and Advocacy Department.] Introduction Whether in the Americas, Africa, Australia or elsewhere, colonialism and its practices of domination, conquest, settlement, and exploitation of land and natural resources of the indigenous people has ruptured many ecosystems around the world. Some have accurately argued that colonists owe their success, in part, to such...

[Julia Emtseva is a Research Fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law.] The recent developments in Afghanistan shocked the whole world. With the US withdrawal from the country, the Taliban rapidly swept across Afghanistan and took over Kabul. With no clear prospects of the country’s development, the issues of justice are acute as never before. After the failure of past...

Mathilde Laronche is the Research and Advocacy Officer and Sophie Rickard is the Programme Manager at the International Commission of Jurists' Middle East and North Africa Programme. A whole year has passed since the devastating Beirut port blast on 4 August 2020, and yet, the victims, their families and the Lebanese people are still waiting for truth and justice.  The investigation promised by the Lebanese...