[JURIST] United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour [official profile] on Monday "strongly condemned" the weekend Israeli bombing of the Lebanese village of Qana [JURIST report] that resulted in the deaths of some 60 civilians - including 37 children - and said that an independent investigation is necessary "in order to establish facts and conduct an impartial legal analysis of the persistent allegations of violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law during this conflict." In a statement [text], Arbour said "international expertise" was necessary to evaluate the situation despite Israel's expressed intent to investigate directly. She also emphasized that while effective advance warning of attacks possibly affecting the civilian population had to be given, that legal obligation did not absolve the parties to the conflict of their other obligations under international law regarding the protection of civilians, and noted that in practical terms

Many people are simply unable to leave southern Lebanon because they have no transport, because roads have been destroyed, because they are ill or elderly, because they must care for others who are physically unable to make the journey, or because they simply have no where else to go. Many thousands of civilians will still be in Southern Lebanon after [Israel's announced 48-hour] suspension of air strikes is ended.

[JURIST] Two British men who face fraud charges in the US related to the Enron scandal [JURIST news archive] are searching for new lawyers, according to papers filed Monday by counsel for a third British man also facing trial. The trial date for the three former NatWest [corporate website] bankers is set for September 11, but the men claim they will not be ready for trial at that time due to the search for counsel. The UK citizens lost an extradition fight [JURIST report] earlier this month and each faces seven counts of wire fraud [indictment, PDF] for allegedly entering into a secret agreement with former Enron Chief Financial Officer Andrew Fastow [Chronicle profile] to illegally receive money.

Lawyers for Gary Mulgrew and Giles Darby initially represented the men but withdrew shortly after a bond proceeding, as agreed upon by the former British bankers. A lawyer for David Bermingham, who rounds out the trio, filed documents in court Monday to petition for a rescheduled trial. US Magistrate Judge Stephen Smith is expected to consider the issue at a hearing Tuesday. The men have all been living in the US since July 13 on a $1 million bond that requires their presence in the US pending trial. AP has more.

[JURIST] Several hundred thousand protestors camped out in Mexico City's major business district Monday to rally against the defeat of presidential candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador [campaign website, in Spanish; Wikipedia profile] in the country's July 2 election [JURIST report] and call for a ballot recount. The protestors, who were led by Lopez Obrador, brought the capital city's Reforma boulevard and the nearby Zocalo square to a standstill, causing traffic jams and business delays at the headquarters of many major corporations located on the street. Lopez Obrador's supporters claim fraudulent practices [JURIST report] allowed conservative candidate Felipe Calderon [campaign website, in Spanish; Wikipedia profile] to win the election by a mere 0.6 of a percentage point [JURIST report] and are calling for a manual recount of the votes.

Observers from the European Union [official website] have said that they witnessed no fraud in their review of the election, but Mexico's Federal Electoral Tribunal [official website, in Spanish] is now considering whether to allow a recount [JURIST report]. The seven judges will decide whether to recalculate the ballots by August 31 and many of Lopez Obrador's supporters are expected to continue protesting in the capital until a decision is reached. Mexico City police are unlikely to intervene since Lopez Obrador was mayor of the capital city prior to his presidential bid and the police force is still led by his Democratic Revolution Party [party website, in Spanish]. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] Corruption charges filed [JURIST report] last week against former Malawi President Bakili Muluzi [BBC profile] have been dropped after the head of the country's Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) [official website] was suspended, Malawi's director of public prosecutions said Monday. President Bingu wa Mutharika [BBC profile; BBC profile], Muluzi's hand-picked successor, suspended ACB director Gustave Kaliwo on Thursday [Nation report], leaving no one to oversee the case against Muluzi.

Muluzi, who ruled Malawi [CIA backgrounder] from 1994 to 2004, had been charged with 42 counts of corruption, fraud and theft arising from allegations that he directed campaign contributions into his personal accounts. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] The parliament of Afghanistan [JURIST news archive; official website] on Monday confirmed Abdul Salam Hazami as chief justice of the Afghan Supreme Court [Wikipedia backgrounder] after rejecting an earlier nominee put forward by President Hamid Karzai [BBC profile]. Hazami's new nomination was approved by a vote of 158-16, with five abstentions. Hazami, who graduated from Kabul University and Al-Azhar University in Egypt, left Afghanistan after the Soviet Union invasion in 1979. He did postgraduate work in the US and returned to Afghanistan after US-led forces ousted the Taliban from power in late 2001. Hazami told AP in an interview he would fight judicial corruption and protect judicial independence.

Karzai originally renominated Fazel Hadi Shinwari for the position. Shinwari had served as chief justice since soon after the Taliban fell, but he was rejected by parliament [JURIST report] in May because of concerns about his positions on human rights and freedom of speech. The Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) [advocacy website] praised Hazami and other judicial appointees, saying that they "believe in an independent judiciary." AP has more.

[JURIST] Lawyers for the Texas Republican Party [party website] argued before the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit [official website] Monday that the GOP should be allowed to remove former US House Majority Leader Tom DeLay [JURIST news archive] from the November ballot because he no longer lives in Texas. The party is appealing a decision [text, PDF; Dallas Morning News report] by US District Judge Sam Sparks [official profile] earlier this month that DeLay must stay on the ballot. The Texas Democratic Party [party website] contends that, under a provision of the Texas Election Code [text, PDF] governing the withdrawal and ineligibility of candidates, DeLay remains eligible because it's possible he will still be a Texas "inhabitant" on Election Day, as required by Article I, Section 2, of the US Constitution [text].

During oral arguments Monday, a Fifth Circuit panel suggested that DeLay's eligibility turns on whether there is "conclusive" evidence that he has moved to Virginia following his indictment on money-laundering charges and resignation from Congress [JURIST reports]. Two of the judges said Delay could move back to Texas before the election. Delay is now licensed to drive and registered to vote in Virginia and has said he plans to reside there indefinitely, although his wife continues to live in their home outside Houston. AP has more. The Houston Chronicle has local coverage.

[JURIST] A senior Italian intelligence official has told prosecutors that the US Central Intelligence Agency [official website] had planned to kidnap more than 10 Muslims suspected of terrorism from Italy and elsewhere and deliver them to Middle Eastern countries for interrogation and detention, the Chicago Tribune reported Monday. Gen. Gustavo Pignero, who along with a colleague was arrested [JURIST report] on suspicion of collaborating with the CIA in the alleged extraordinary rendition [JURIST news archive] of the cleric Abu Omar, testified before Italian prosecutors in June that the CIA had targeted "certainly more than 10" Italian residents for rendition, as well as suspects in Austria, Belgium and the Netherlands.

Pignero's testimony was revealed in an Italian arrest warrant for the former CIA station chief in Rome - one of at least 26 warrants issued for Americans in the Abu Omar case. Abu Omar, also known as Osama Moustafa Hassan Nasr [Wikipedia profile], was allegedly taken from a Milan street in 2003 and flown to Egypt, where he was tortured. Nicolo Pollari, chief of the Italian Intelligence and Security Services (SISMI) [official website], has told legislators that the Italian intelligence agency was not involved [JURIST report] in the alleged abduction, while a lawyer representing the other intelligence official arrested with Pignero this month said that SISMI denied a CIA request to participate in the Abu Omar rendition [JURIST report] because officials believed the abudction was illegal. The Chicago Tribune has more.

[JURIST] A federal judge has blocked a Minnesota law [text] scheduled to take effect Tuesday that would have imposed a fine of up to $25 on minors who purchase video games rated for adults and would have required retailers to post notice of the fines. The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) [official website] argued before US District Judge James Rosenbaum that the pending law would violate the First Amendment rights of the video game retailers [JURIST report], even though the law targeted consumers. In 2003, the US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit [official website], which is binding over the District of Minnesota [official website], ruled that video games are a protected form of expression.

Judges have struck down similar laws as unconstitutional in Michigan, California and Illinois [JURIST reports]. In Louisiana, a federal judge has temporarily blocked the enforcement [JURIST report] of Louisiana's new law banning the sale of violent video games to minors. AP has more.

[JURIST] Former telecommunications executive Clark McLeod has agreed to pay $4.4 million to settle a lawsuit brought by New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer [official profile], Spitzer's office announced [NY AG press release] Monday. Spitzer filed the lawsuit [complaint, PDF; AG press release] in 2002, alleging that McLeod, former chairman and CEO of McLeodUSA Inc. [corporate backgrounder], had received stock in 34 companies before their initial public offerings in exchange for directing $77 million of his company's money to the investment bank Salomon Smith Barney. The practice, known as IPO "spinning," has been banned since Wall Street firms agreed to a settlement in 2003. A New York State trial judge entered a summary judgment against McLeod [order text, PDF; AG press release] in February, calling spinning a "sophisticated form of bribery." The settlement averts a hearing in which the judge would have considered how much McLeod should have paid in damages and restitution.

The settlement ends Spitzer's involvement in a string of spinning cases. He has reached settlements from four other telecommunications executives, including Bernard Ebbers [JURIST news archive] of WorldCom Inc. Spitzer said he would distribute the settlement money to New York law schools' securities arbitration clinics for small investors. "IPO spinning was a deceptive, avaricious game played to benefit a few CEOs at the expense of shareholders," Spitzer said. "As a result of these cases, this practice has been banned and a significant amount of money disgorged to benefit the public." AP has more.

[JURIST] The Colorado Supreme Court [official website] ruled Monday that a state law prohibiting felons from voting while on parole does not violate the Colorado Constitution. The unanimous court affirmed the decision of the Denver district court, holding that parole is part of a convict's "full term of imprisonment," even though parole did not exist when the voting provisions of the state constitution [text] were adopted. According to the court's opinion [text, PDF],

Conditional release on parole - an extension of one’s confinement intended to aid the reintegration of criminals into society - was never intended to be the sort of unconditional release that the Colorado Constitution envisions will be accompanied by the full restoration of a person’s rights.

A parolee is given certain privileges to assist in returning to community while testing his or her capability to adhere to restrictions imposed. The convicted person can be reincarcerated for a parole violation and does not enjoy the full panoply of legal rights a person not serving a sentence enjoys.

[JURIST] The judge presiding over the much-anticipated corruption trial of former South Africa deputy president Jacob Zuma [party profile] Monday postponed proceedings until September 5. The prosecution sought to have the trial postponed for further investigation, while the defense sought to have the case withdrawn. Zuma was indicted on corruption charges [JURIST report] last November, and has said the charges are part of a conspiracy to discredit him politically [JURIST report] in order to prevent him from challenging South African President Thabo Mbeki [BBC profile] in the 2009 presidential election.

In June, the African National Congress [party website] reinstated Zuma to his deputy president position within the party after he was acquitted on rape charges [JURIST reports]. Zuma was fired [JURIST report] from his position in the government last year after one of his advisors, South African businessman Schabir Shaik [Wikipedia profile] was found guilty [JURIST report] on charges of corruption and fraud. BBC News has more. From South Africa, the Mail & Guardian has local coverage.

[JURIST] Israeli authorities have sentenced an army officer to 28 days in a military prison for refusing to serve in the ongoing Israeli military campaign in Lebanon [JURIST news archive], according to Israeli media reports Monday. Reserve Captain Amir Paster, 32, an infantry officer and a student at Tel Aviv University, is the first Israeli soldier punished for refusing to serve in the current conflict and has received harsh criticism from the Israel Defense Forces [official website] for setting what it termed a bad example for his troops.

Paster refused to serve on the grounds that Israeli operations were harming civilians, declaring at his trial "taking part in this war runs contrary to the values upon which he was brought up", according to a statement by Israeli peace and objector support group Yesh Guvl [advocacy website]. A spokesman for Yesh Guvl has "reported contacts with about a dozen reserve officers and soldiers who have received emergency call-up and plan to refuse to take part in the Lebanon operation." Earlier this month, Staff Sergeant Itzik Shabbat, a 28-year-old TV producer, became the first Israeli conscientious objector [Haaretz report] against the Lebanon campaign when he refused to comply with an emergency order to report for reserve duty. UPI has more. Haaretz has local coverage.

[JURIST] The UK High Court [official website] on Monday denied a bid [JURIST report] by a British lesbian couple married in Canada to have their marriage recognized by British law, saying that the traditional British definition of marriage refers only to a union between a man and a woman with the purpose of reproduction. Sue Wilkinson and Celia Kitzinger [advocacy website] had challenged the Civil Partnership Act 2004 [text], which only accords same-sex couples who legally marry overseas the recognition of a civil union, saying the law was "profoundly discriminatory" because British law automatically recognizes heterosexual marriages performed in a different country. The High Court, however, ruled [judgment text] that civil unions give same-sex couples the same legal rights as marriage, and deferred to the traditional view of marriage.

Lawyers representing Wilkinson and Kitzinger sought a court declaration validating their marriage under the European Convention of Human Rights [text, PDF] and the UK Human Rights Act [text]. The judgment, written by presiding judge Sir Marc Potter, marks something of an about-turn for the court, which had indicated earlier that it might recognize the marriage. In an interim ruling in April that allowed [text] Wilkinson and Kitzinger's case to continue, Potter said:

I consider that there is sufficient material available for an argument based on principle and Commonwealth and US jurisprudence that the requirement of the Civil Partnership Act that a marriage between same-sex partners abroad must, on registration, be treated as a civil partnership and not a marriage, is on the face of it discriminatory on the grounds of sexual orientation in that, despite the equivalence of the material rights and responsibilities granted by the Act to the rights and the responsibilities of those enjoyed by married couples, the validity and dignity of the ceremony and title of marriage itself is denied to them.

[JURIST] The UN Security Council [official website] Monday passed a resolution giving Iran [JURIST news archive] until August 31 to halt uranium enrichment and threatening sanctions if it does not comply. Resolution 1696 [text], adopted 14-1 with Qatar voting against, nonetheless requires additional Security Council discussion before sanctions can actually be imposed. Russia and China pressed for the additional flexibility. AP has more.

An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said Sunday that Iran would stop considering international incentives [JURIST report] to end its uranium enrichment program if the UN Security Council passed a resolution sanctioning the country. Iran's Permanent Mission to the UN [official website] offers a comprehensive backgrounder [PDF] on the country's nuclear program and international effeorts to limit it. Updated talking points are also available from the Mission.

12:20 PM ET - Iran's UN Ambassador immediately rejected the resolution, telling the Security Council that "Iran's peaceful nuclear program poses no threat to international peace and security and therefore dealing with this issue in the Security Council is unwarranted and void of any legal basis or practical utility." Javad Zarif objected to having been allowed to make a statement only after the vote had been taken, and not in advance. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] US federal judges grant and deny asylum to asylum seekers at a disparate rate in the United States, according a study [text] by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) [official website] released Sunday. The report examined nearly 300,000 immigration cases from 1994-2005, and found that ten percent of immigration judges denied asylum in 86 percent of their cases, while another ten percent of immigration judges denied asylum in only 34 percent of their cases. In addition, the study showed distinct variations in asylum denials for different nationalities, reporting that more than 80 percent of asylum seekers from Haiti and El Salvador were denied asylum, but less than 30 percent of asylum seekers from Afghanistan and Myanmar were denied.

A similar study [materials] by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom [official website] last year found that more than 80 percent of Cubans and 60 percent of Iraqis were granted asylum, but again found that asylum seekers from Haiti and El Salvador fared significantly worse. In January, US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales called for a comprehensive review of the immigration courts [ABC News report], saying that some immigration judges were abusive and not respectful of persons appearing before them. The New York Times has more.

[JURIST] The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) [advocacy website] said Monday in the immediate wake of Israel's airstrike [JURIST report] on the south Lebanon village of Qana that it was "alarmed" at what it described as the "recurring lack of respect for international humanitarian law by the warring parties." Condemning the Israeli attack on a civilian target, the Geneva-based ICRC said:

Issuing advance warning to the civilian population of impending attacks in no way relieves a warring party of its obligations under the rules and principles of international humanitarian law. In particular, the principles of distinction and proportionality must be respected at all times.

[JURIST] ICTY Chief Prosecutor Carla del Ponte [official profile] has appealed the two-year prison sentence [press release] for Naser Oric [ICTY case backgrounder], a former senior commander of Bosnian Muslim forces in Srebrenica convicted of war crimes [JURIST report]. The International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) [official website] convicted Oric in June for failing to prevent the murder and inhumane treatment of Serb prisoners, and released him immediately after the conviction because Oric had already spent more than two years in detention. UN prosecutors were disappointed with the sentence, after having called for an 18 year prison term. Serbian political leaders including Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica were similarly critical, saying the ruling showed a judicial bias against Serbs.

Oric's indictment [text] alleged that military police under his command beat Serb detainees with metal bars, baseball bats and rifle butts and extracted teeth with pliers. Oric was charged with failing to prevent abuses by military police under his command, and was also charged with responsibility for destruction of Serb villages around Srebrenica [JURIST news archive]. Reuters has more. BBC News has additional coverage.

[JURIST] Sexual violence in US prisons, perpetrated by both inmates and prison staff, often goes unreported [DOJ press release] because abused inmates fear a reprisal or do not trust prison staff, according to a US Department of Justice report [text, PDF; summary] released Sunday. The Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) [official website] examined reports to prison administrations comprising 78 percent of the adult prison population in 2005, finding over 6,000 allegations of sexual violence at a rate of 2.8 acts per 1,000 inmates, up from 2.5 acts in a 2004 survey [text, PDF; summary]. Staff initiated sexual misconduct constituted 38 percent of the allegations, while inmate-to-inmate rape constituted 35 percent of allegations. Lesser degrees of sexual harassment and contacts represented the remaining 27 percent of allegations. The authors of the report also warned against placing juvenile inmates with the adult prison population, finding that the incidents of rape and abuse are five times higher than the adult prison population.

The report, however, notes that the administration records used in the surveys do not provide "reliable estimates of sexual violence" because inmates often fail to report instances of sexual violence. The report, which is the second [JURIST report] in an annual series required by the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 [text, PDF; DOJ backgrounder], showed a marked improvement over staff sexual misconduct and harassment since the initial 2004 study. The BJS is currently seeking a better way to measure sexual violence in prisons, and is considering anonymous self-administered surveys. AP has more.