A three-judge panel of the UK High Court strongly criticized the Ministry of Defence (MOD) Friday for its failure to properly setup an independent inquiry into claims that war crimes had been committed by British soldiers following a May 2004 gun battle, known as the "Battle of Danny Boy" , in Southern Iraq. The panel, [...]
Ireland approved the European Union (EU) reform treaty, known as the Lisbon Treaty , in a second referendum vote held Friday, the European Commission announced Saturday. The vote, which amends Ireland's constitution, was approved by approximately 67 percent of voters, according to an official poll . European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso applauded the treaty's [...]
A judge in the US District Court for the District of Columbia on Friday ordered the US Department of Justice (DOJ) to release some files from its interview with former vice president Dick Cheney over his role in leaking the name of Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) agent Valerie Plame . The lawsuit, filed by Citizens [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled Friday that a lawsuit against Canadian oil exploration company Talisman Energy for alleged human rights violations in Sudan should be dismissed. The court affirmed the lower court's finding that the plaintiffs, including the Presbyterian Church of Sudan, failed to establish that Talisman acted with the [...]
The Presbyterian Church of Sudan v. Talisman Energy, Inc., US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, October 2, 2009 . Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here. Latest commentary available here. JURIST has more on human rights issues in Sudan.
Ingrid Burke, Pitt Law '11, Lynsie Clott, and Aaron Freudenthal attended licensed and unlicensed protests primarily organized by self-proclaimed anarchist groups during the G-20 Summit…. "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"-Beatrice Hall, Friends of Voltaire The City of Pittsburgh undertook an enormous security [...]
The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Thursday released a detailed judgment to accompany a July declaration that former president Pervez Musharraf violated the Constitution of Pakistan when he declared emergency rule in November 2007. The court found in July that Musharraf's removal of many members of the country's judiciary, including current Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammed [...]
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled Thursday that Russia intefered with the freedom of religion by refusing to register two Scientology groups as "religious organizations." Russian authorities had rejected attempts by Scientologist branches in Surgut and Nizhnekamsk to register because they did not meet the Article 8 requirement of Russia's Religious Act that [...]
Irish voters went to the polls for a second time Friday to vote on the European Union (EU) reform treaty, also known as the Lisbon Treaty . Irish voters previously rejected the treaty, and Ireland agreed in June to hold a second referendum after EU leaders agreed to certain concessions , including legal guarantees that [...]
The US House of Representatives on Wednesday voted 258-163 to approve a non-binding motion to instruct conferees to prohibit the transfer of Guantanamo Bay detainees to the US for any reason, including prosecution and incarceration. The motion, introduced by Rep. Hal Rogers (R-KY) , instructs House conference committee members to insist on the prohibition during [...]
