[JURIST] US officials have arrested eight people for allegedly attempting to buy weapons to use against the Sri Lankan military, and for attempting to bribe US State Department officials to remove their organization from the State Department's list of designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations [DS materials]. Following the arrests, federal prosecutors unsealed two criminal complaints Monday against eight members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) [CFR backgrounder; faction website], or the Tamil Tigers, charging the defendants with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists under 18 USC 2339(b) [text], violations of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) [text], and conspiracy to bribe public officials, 18 USC 201 [text].

Four of the defendants are Canadians [CP report] who were arrested in Brooklyn while attempting to purchase surface-to-air missiles and AK-47 rifles to use against the Sri Lankan military. The Tamil Tigers have been accused of carrying out suicide bombings and assassinations in Sri Lanka in a fight to establish an independent state for minority ethnic Tamils. Read the DOJ press release. AP has more.

[JURIST] The US Department of Justice (DOJ) on Monday filed a complaint in federal court seeking an injunction against Verizon Communications [corporate website] and the Maine Public Utilities Commission (PUC) [official website] to prevent the PUC from demanding that Verizon attest in a sworn statement to comments previously made regarding Verizon's participation in the NSA domestic surveillance program [JURIST news archive]. Verizon has previously denied turning over consumer phone records to the NSA [JURIST report], and on August 9, the PUC ordered Verizon to detail their participation in the NSA program as part of an investigation into alleged privacy law violations. The DOJ argued in the complaint that if Verizon complies with the PUC order, any admission they make could negatively affect national security.

The DOJ in June sued the Attorney General of New Jersey [JURIST report] to block telecommunications companies from cooperating with a New Jersey investigation into whether they broke privacy laws by giving customer call records to the government. In several lawsuits challenging the NSA surveillance program, the DOJ has argued such suits could reveal state secrets [JURIST report]. Last week, a federal judge ruled the NSA spying program unconstitutional, a ruling immediately appealed [JURIST reports] by the DOJ. AP has more.

[JURIST] An Israeli military court on Tuesday charged Palestinian parliament speaker Aziz Dweik [official profile in Arabic; JMCC profile] with membership and activity in a terrorist organization, over Dweik's complaints that the Israel Defense Forces [official website] court has no jurisdiction over elected Palestinian officials. Dweik's next court hearing is scheduled for August 31, again at the Ofer military base in the West Bank. Dweik was arrested [JURIST report] at his home in Ramallah on August 5 for being a senior leader of Hamas [CFR backgrounder], which Israel contends is a terrorist organization. He was hospitalized [JURIST report] last week for chest pains and breathing problems, which he alleges were brought on by abuse at the hands of his Israeli captors, allegations echoed by two now-released Hamas officials [JURIST report] and denied by Israel.

Israel seized seven Palestinian government ministers and some 20 legislators [JURIST report] on June 29 following the abduction of IDF Cpl. Gilad Shalit [Wikipedia backgrounder]. Israeli officials said in June that the captured Palestinian lawmakers would be tried under standard criminal warrants [JURIST report] for membership in or leadership of a terrorist organization. Arrests of several high-ranking Palestinian officials continued over the weekend with detentions of Palestinian Deputy Prime Minister Nasser Shaer [JURIST report] and Mahmoud al-Ramahi [JURIST report], secretary-general of the Palestinian Legislative Council [official website]. BBC News has more. AP has additional coverage.

[JURIST] The Geneva Conventions of 1949 [text] is now the first international treaty to gain universal international acceptance, according to Jean-Philippe Lavoyer, head of the legal division of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) [official website]. Lavoyer said on Monday that with accessions to the Geneva Conventions by Nauru [CIA backgrounder] on June 27, and Montenegro [CIA backgrounder] on August 2, the Conventions have been signed by 194 countries [ICRC list] - the 192 member states of the United Nations [list], as well as the Vatican and Palestinian Authority.

The first Geneva Convention protecting vulnerable persons in times of conflict was signed by twelve nations in 1864 and the modern Geneva Conventions were drafted after World War II to protect the victims of war worldwide. As both Nauru and Montenegro also signed the 1977 Additional Protocol I [text] and Additional Protocol II [text], the first protocol now has 166 parties, and the second has 162 parties. Read the ICRC press release.

[JURIST] Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] released a report [text; press release] Tuesday finding that security forces in Guinea [US Department of State backgrounder] are routinely torturing people to coerce confessions in an increasingly unstable domestic climate. According to the report, "the most common types of abuse committed by the police...include binding the detainee with nylon cords in painful positions and then beating him." Within the past year, deteriorating economic conditions in the west African country have prompted multiple strikes [IRIN report], some of which were plagued by violence. In the most recent demonstrations in June, police killed at least 13 people.

The report identifies the "atmosphere of paranoia and repression" from the dictatorship of Sékou Touré [Wikipedia profile] that ended in 1984 as a major factor of the current conditions in Guinea. While human rights conditions have improved since current Guinea President Lansana Conté [BBC profile] took power, HRW says that the "Conté regime has been marked by abuses and repression." Conte has been in failing health recently and was flown to Switzerland for medical treatment [VOA report] earlier this month. Uncertainties about succession have worsened the unstable situation in the country. IRIN has more.

[JURIST] The chairman of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) [official website] on Monday voiced disapproval [speech transcript, PDF; press release] of congressional efforts to address "net neutrality," arguing that if current regulations do not prevent broadband providers from accepting money from content providers in exchange for preferential bandwidth treatment, or from interfering with the content of competitors, then the free market will resolve the issue. Speaking at the Progress and Freedom annual conference [agenda], FTC Chairman Deborah Platt Majoras [official profile] also announced the formation of an Internet Access Task Force, charged with advising the FTC on Internet issues, especially net neutrality. Majoras emphasized that the FTC will not hesitate to confront alleged net neutrality violators under the FTC's mandate to regulate anticompetitive, deceptive, or unfair business practices under Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act [text], the Sherman Antitrust Act [text], and the Clayton Act [text].

In May, the US House Judiciary Committee [official website] approved the Internet Freedom and Nondiscrimination Act of 2006 [HR 5417 text], which applies federal antitrust law to alleged breaches of "net neutrality." Several other net neutrality bills are also currently before Congress. In July, Google Vice President Vinton Cerf threatened to file antitrust complaints against Internet broadband providers [JURIST report] if Congress fails to pass effective net neutrality legislation.

Other federal regulatory bodies have asserted jurisdiction over the net neutrality issue. FCC Commissioner Michael Copps said in May that the FCC is authorized under Title 1 of the Communications Act of 1934 [text] to regulate breaches of net neutrality [JURIST report], and said the FCC may draft agency rules to combat alleged violations. Legal precedent suggests that the FCC has this authority, as Justice Clarence Thomas, writing in 2004 for the majority in National Cable & Telecommunications Association vs. Brand X Internet Services [opinion text; Duke law case backgrounder], said that Internet service providers can be subjected to FCC-imposed "special regulatory duties" under Title 1. CNET News has more.

[JURIST] A UN committee charged with creating worldwide standards to protect persons with disabilities has been swamped with 150 proposed amendments to the draft convention [text] currently under discussion. The Eighth Session [UN materials] of the committee on the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities [official website; JURIST report] has made progress in several key areas, according to conference chair Don MacKay of New Zealand, in settling on a definition of disabilities [DOC text], and on deciding to emphasize the right of the disabled to make their own decisions if they choose, rather than requiring a guardian to make decisions for the intellectually disabled.

The committee is scheduled to wrap up talks by Friday, but participants worry that the large volume of proposed amendments may prevent a speedy agreement on the final text. The main disagreements involve issues of sexual and reproductive freedoms. In addition, the US has remained opposed to the convention in general, arguing that such an agreement could have a confusing or negative impact on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) [DOJ materials; text]. AP has more. The UN News Centre has additional coverage.

[JURIST] The US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit [official website] has overturned [ruling, PDF] a Missouri law [text] banning sexually suggestive billboards on highways, saying that it was an unconstitutional infringement on commercial free speech. The court ruled Monday that the law, which was enacted in 2004 to protect children and prevent traffic accidents, was too broad. According to Missouri House Speaker Rod Jetton [official profile], the court's ruling "leaves Missourians of every age exposed to sleazy billboards."

Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon [official profile] plans to seek a rehearing by the entire appeals court. AP has more.

[JURIST] A federal judge on Tuesday consented to a deferred-prosecution agreement [text] between federal prosecutors and investment banker Frank Quattrone [NNDB profile] that allows Quattrone to avoid a third trial on obstruction of justice and witness tampering charges [indictment, PDF] without admitting guilt. Under the deal, the indictment against Quattrone will be dropped if he keeps his name clear for one year.

Quattrone, one of the dot-com era's most prominent investment bankers, was accused of forwarding emails to fellow employees at Credit Suisse [corporate website], encouraging them to "clean up" files and other evidence in the midst of an SEC investigation into whether the company was selling shares to preferential buyers during initial public offerings. Quattrone's first trial resulted in a mistrial [JURIST report] after the jury could not agree on a verdict, but Quattrone was later convicted [JURIST report] for sending a 22-word e-mail encouraging colleagues to destroy files. The conviction was overturned [JURIST report] by a federal appeals court in March on the grounds that the jury instructions were erroneous. After an appeal [JURIST report] by Quattrone, the US Securities and Exchange Commission [official website] earlier this year reversed a lifetime ban [JURIST report] preventing Quattrone from working in the securities industry. AP has more.

[JURIST] An Iraqi official said Tuesday that an independent panel established to investigate the alleged March 12 rape and murder of a 14-year-old girl [JURIST news archive] and the murder of her family at the hands of US soldiers in Mahmudiya has begun its inquiry. The US military has charged five soldiers in the case and is currently deciding whether the soldiers will face courts-martial [JURIST report]; another former soldier faces charges [JURIST report] in a US civil court. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki [BBC profile], who called for the independent investigation [JURIST report] in July, has said, however, that he wants those believed responsible tried in an Iraqi court. Adnan Mahmoud, the chief prosecutor of Mahmudiya's criminal court who is leading the investigation, said Tuesday that if the soldiers do not stand trial in an Iraqi court they will be tried in absentia. Mahmoud also rejected arguments that the accused soldiers are immune from Iraqi prosecution [JURIST report] under a decree [PDF text] issued by the US-run Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) [official website], saying they were not taking part in a military action when the crimes were committed. When the Iraqi panel concludes its investigation, the Iraqi Cabinet will review the results and determine the next step.

Four US soldiers have been charged [JURIST report] with rape and murder, while a fifth has been charged with dereliction of duty for failing to report the incident and making false statements. Steven Green, who was discharged from the Army before the allegations arose, has pleaded not guilty to charges of rape and murder in the US District Court for the District of Kentucky [official website]. Green's arraignment has been delayed [JURIST report] to avoid complications with evidence used in the investigation [JURIST report] into the five soldiers still in Iraq. AP has more.

[JURIST] Eleven suspects charged [JURIST report; BBC charge list] in connection with the foiled terror plot [JURIST report] to bomb airplanes crossing the Atlantic Ocean appeared in a UK court for the first time Tuesday. Eight defendants were remanded in custody until a hearing on September 4, two were remanded until September 19, and the last, a 17-year-old-boy, was remanded until August 29. Eight men are charged with conspiracy to commit murder and with preparing acts of terrorism under Section 5 of the Terrorism Act 2006 [text]. Three other people are charged under the Terrorism Act 2000 [text], one with possession of articles useful to a person preparing an act of terrorism, and two with failing to disclose information of material assistance in preventing an act of terrorism. BBC News has more.

The trial is expected to commence next year and officials predict it will be one of the largest and most expensive trials ever to occur in the UK. The trial will most likely take place in Woolwich Crown Court, a high-security court in south London. UK Home Secretary John Reid [official profile] and UK Attorney General Lord Goldsmith [official profile] have asked the media to "exercise considerable restraint" in reporting about the trial until it commences so as to not create any prejudice. The Independent has additional coverage.

[JURIST] Witness testimony began Tuesday in Saddam Hussein's trial [JURIST news archive] on genocide and crimes against humanities charges [JURIST report] in connection to the so-called "Anfal" operation [HRW backgrounder] that led to the killings of as many as 180,000 Kurds in northern Iraq in the 1980s. Two survivors described planes flying over two Kurdish villages dropping chemical weapons on the villagers and said that many people were blinded in the attacks. One of the witnesses also said she had been detained for over a week, and that two relatives had disappeared while being held. Several of the defendants and their lawyers questioned the testimony, saying the witnesses had been coached. Hussein and six co-defendants [AP profile] all face crimes against humanity charges at the Iraqi High Tribunal, and Hussein and co-defendant Ali Hassan al-Majid [BBC profile], known as "Chemical Ali, face additional genocide charges. Testimony from survivors of the attack will continue when the trial [BBC timeline] resumes Wednesday.

Hussein also faces separate crimes against humanity charges [JURIST report] stemming from a crackdown in the Iraqi town of Dujail, and the court is expected to render a verdict on those charges October 16. Hussein is eligible for the death penalty [JURIST report] in that case, and a US official, speaking anonymously, indicated that the Anfal trial could continue posthumously [JURIST report] should Hussein be executed before proceedings in the second trial conclude. AP has more. BBC News has additional coverage.