[JURIST] In his final will, dictated to his principal Iraqi defense counsel Khalil al-Dulaimi [JURIST news archive] 24 hours before his December 30 execution [JURIST report], former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein [JURIST news archive] instructed his legal team to stop all appeals, saying that his impending execution was the work of US and Iranian collaboration. The document, a copy of which was obtained by the Associated Press from Hussein lawyer Amin el-Deeb, empowered his lawyers to "decide whatever is related to me except appealing for the life of Saddam Hussein to any of the presidents, kings, Arabs or foreigners." El-Deeb said that Dulaimi's last meeting with Saddam was also attended by his co-defendants. AP has more.

It was also revealed Thursday by UK Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett [official biography] that Britain sought to prevent Hussein's execution, even "lobbying at the highest level in Baghdad on 29 December." Beckett told Labour Party MP Andrew Mackinlay [official website] in a letter that the government was continuing to press Iraqi officials to abolish the death penalty in the face of the pending hangings of two other Saddam regime officials. Earlier this week, UK Prime Minister Tony Blair [JURIST news archive] broke a week-long silence to announce his displeasure [JURIST report] with how Hussein's execution was carried out. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] The US House of Representatives [official website] passed HR 3 [resolution summary] Thursday, which would amend the Public Health Service Act [text] to allow for additional embryonic stem cell [JURIST news archive] research. In a press release [text, PDF] issued after passage, the White House characterized embryonic stem cells as human life, and promised to veto the bill. President Bush’s first veto in office came this past summer, when he vetoed another embryonic stem cell research bill [JURIST report]. Bill supporters had hoped that midterm elections would make the bill veto-proof, but Thursday’s 253-174 vote [roll call] is still short of the required two-thirds majority.

In 2001, Bush limited federal funding for research [press release] on embryonic stem cells to the then existing lines, of which only 21 remain viable. Researchers say that many of these lines are contaminated, and are not very useful, while research from 300 newer lines that were obtained from unused embryos destined to be thrown away from fertility clinics show far more promise. AP has more.

[JURIST] Protests [JURIST report] against the US military prison for terror suspects at Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] Cuba continued Thursday as the facility marked its fifth anniversary. In Cuba itself, peace activists, including former detainee Asif Iqbal [Wikipedia profile], and Gold Star Families for Peace [advocacy website] founder Cindy Sheehan [Wikipedia profile] marched from Guantanamo city to the location of the US camp to demonstrate against its existence. AP has more. Meanwhile new United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon [official profile] also called for the closure of the facility [transcript]. Ban follows in the footsteps of his predecessor Kofi Annan [official profile], who had also called [JURIST report] for the camp's shutdown. Ban will reiterate his call when meeting with President Bush next week. Reuters has more.

In Washington, a group of approximately 100 people were arrested while protesting the camp inside the US District Court for the District of Columbia [official website]. The group had a permit to assemble outside the courthouse, but moved inside after going through metal detectors, when Chief Judge Thomas Hogan [official biography] told US marshals to allow the group to hold a peaceful demonstration. The arrests came soon after the group began waving signs and banners, violating rules set down by the marshals. AP has more.

[JURIST] A federal judge in Kentucky ruled Thursday that three plaintiffs would be allowed to proceed to the discovery phase of their lawsuit against the Holy See [official website] alleging that US bishops, acting as agents of Vatican officials, negligently allowed known child abusers to remain in their positions. The 1976 Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act [text] generally excludes sovereign nations from the jurisdiction of federal courts, but US District Judge John G. Heyburn II noted that an exception permits suits for personal injuries caused by the negligent actions of agents or employees. AP has more. CWNews.com has additional coverage. From Louisville, the Courier-Journal has local coverage.

In an earlier stage of the same case in October 2005, Heyburn ruled [JURIST report] that the Vatican is a foreign state subject to at least some of the immunity protections of the FSIA and could assert those protections when it was improperly served with process. In other cases naming the Vatican as a defendant, the US Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Portland [diocesan website; diocesan website on clergy abuse] in December settled 150 child sex abuse lawsuits [JURIST report], mooting the Vatican's appeal [JURIST report] of the lower court ruling allowing the abuse case to proceed [JURIST report].

[JURIST] The President of Bangladesh [JURIST news archive] declared a state of emergency in the troubled country Thursday in the face of violent political protests and a 19-party alliance threatening to blockade voting places before the scheduled January 22 elections. National authorities imposed a curfew on 60 cities and towns and ordered television stations to air state-produced emergency bulletins rather than regular programming. Part IXA of the Bangladesh Constitution [text] authorizes the President to issue a Proclamation of Emergency "...[i]f a grave emergency exists in which the security or economic life of Bangladesh, or any part thereof, is threatened by war or external aggression or internal disturbance..." When a state of emergency exists, the Constitution allows the President to make executive orders that suspend, among other constitutional rights: freedom of movement, freedom of assembly, freedom of speech, freedom from occupation, and the right to property.

The protesters want to delay the elections until alleged flaws are corrected, which include fake names on voter lists, transparent ballot boxes, and biased election officials. Iajuddin Ahmed [Wikipedia profile] also said Friday that he was stepping down as the head of the country's interim government and was appointing former Justice Fazlul Haque to replace him pending the outcome of the elections. The Bangladeshi constitution requires a caretaker government be named 90 days before a national poll. Violence between the main political parties in the country has resulted in at least 34 deaths since October. Reuters has more. AP has additional coverage.

[JURIST] A Mississippi jury Wednesday held the State Farm [corporate website] insurance company liable for $2.5 million dollars in punitive damages after US District Court Judge L.T. Senter Jr. issued an unexpected directed verdict calling on the company to pay $223,292 for rejecting a claim brought in the wake of Hurricane Katrina [JURIST news archive]. Senter ruled that State Farm had to pay the policy limits on a Mississippi home that was damaged during the storm, finding it had not met the burden of proof required by Mississippi law to challenge the policyholders' claim that their home was damaged by wind preceding the hurricane, not water from the storm surge. The State Farm policy at issue categorically excludes any damage caused through negligence; the storm surge of Hurricane Katrina is thought to have resulted from negligent engineering of the levees. AP has more. The Sun-Herald has local coverage.

In the first Katrina-related insurance lawsuit to go to trial, a federal judge in Mississippi ruled in August that Nationwide Insurance was not obligated to cover a policyholder's claims [JURIST report] for water damage caused by the hurricane. In November, a federal judge held [JURIST report; opinion] that flood damage caused by Katrina may be covered under those insurance policies that do not specifically exclude from coverage damage caused by negligence. Attorney General of Mississippi Jim Hood has repeatedly called for a statewide settlement [press release, PDF] between all in-state policyholders and the insurance companies, including State Farm, Allstate, and Nationwide [corporate websites]. Browse Hurricane Katrina Insurance Orders and Opinions via the US District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi [court website].

[JURIST] A Mississippi jury Wednesday held the State Farm [corporate website] insurance company liable for $2.5 million dollars in punitive damages after US District Court Judge L.T. Senter Jr. issued an unexpected directed verdict calling on the company to pay $223,292 for rejecting a claim brought in the wake of Hurricane Katrina [JURIST news archive]. Senter ruled that State Farm had to pay the policy limits on a Mississippi home that was damaged during the storm, finding it had not met the burden of proof required by Mississippi law to challenge the policyholders' claim that their home was damaged by wind preceding the hurricane, not water from the storm surge. The State Farm policy at issue categorically excludes any damage caused through negligence; the storm surge of Hurricane Katrina is thought to have resulted from negligent engineering of the levees. AP has more. The Sun-Herald has local coverage.

In the first Katrina-related insurance lawsuit to go to trial, a federal judge in Mississippi ruled in August that Nationwide Insurance was not obligated to cover a policyholder's claims [JURIST report] for water damage caused by the hurricane. In November, a federal judge held [JURIST report; opinion] that flood damage caused by Katrina may be covered under those insurance policies that do not specifically exclude from coverage damage caused by negligence. Attorney General of Mississippi Jim Hood has repeatedly called for a statewide settlement [press release, PDF] between all in-state policyholders and the insurance companies, including State Farm, Allstate, and Nationwide [corporate websites]. Browse Hurricane Katrina Insurance Orders and Opinions via the US District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi [court website].

[JURIST] Ali Hassan al-Majid [BBC profile], the cousin of Saddam Hussein [JURIST news archive] also known as "Chemical Ali," became the leading defendant Thursday in the genocide trial [JURIST news archive; BBC trial timeline] currently before the Iraqi High Tribunal [official website]. The chief judge presiding over the trial dismissed all charges against Hussein [JURIST report] Monday following his December 30 execution [JURIST report]. The six remaining defendants are all former Hussein regime officials and were originally charged with the late dictator in connection with the deaths of some 180,000 Kurds during the so-called "Anfal" campaigns [HRW backgrounder] of the 1980s. On Thursday, al-Majid took the seat at the front of the dock previously occupied only by Hussein; Hussein Rashid al-Tikriti, former deputy chief of operations in the armed forces, also joined al-Majid in the front row.

On Monday, the voices of Hussein and al-Majid were heard discussing the use of chemical weapons to kill thousands in audio tapes played in court [JURIST report]. Al-Majid said on the tapes that he would use chemical weapons to kill, and curses any criticism by the international community. Prosecutors also plan to introduce video tape evidence which they said also proves the defendant's involvement in massacring Kurds, but al-Majid denied involvement in executing Kurds [AP report] during Thursday's court session. Not guilty pleas [JURIST report] have been entered for all six defendants, who have denied [JURIST report] that chemical weapons were used on the Kurds. The Anfal trial has now been adjourned until January 23. AFP has more.

[JURIST] The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) [advocacy website] Wednesday claimed the refusal of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) [official website] to release two Department of Justice memos points to a cover-up of unlawful abuse. The memos, which discuss interrogation methods and a presidential order concerning the CIA's authorization to set up detention facilities outside the United States, were requested as a result of an ongoing lawsuit against the CIA by the ACLU and four other organizations under the Freedom of Information Act [text; DOJ materials]. The CIA filed a declaration [PDF text] with the US District Court for the Southern District of New York [official website] in an attempt to avoid releasing the memos by citing national security.

The government claimed that "disclosure of such information reasonably could be expected to result in extremely grave damage to the national security...by revealing to our adversaries the counterterrorism playbook that the CIA intended to employ with them." In response, ACLU attorney Amrit Singh stated [press release]:

The CIA's declaration uses national security as a pretext for withholding evidence that high-level government officials in all likelihood authorized abusive techniques that amount to torture. This declaration is especially disturbing because it suggests that unlawful interrogation techniques cleared by the Justice Department for use by the CIA still remain in effect. The American public has a right to know how the government is treating its prisoners.

[JURIST] Former Ethiopian dictator Mengistu Haile Miriam [BBC profile] was sentenced to life imprisonment Thursday after he was convicted on genocide charges [JURIST report] in absentia at the conclusion of a 12-year trial. Mengistu and 72 other former officials were charged with genocide, imprisonment, homicide, and illegal confiscation of property for crimes committed during the "Red Terror" [US LOC backgrounder], where thousands of Mengistu's political opponents were executed. Of the 73 total defendants, 33 were in court for sentencing; 11 defendants were sentenced to life in prison while 47 received a sentence of up to 25 years in prison. Fourteen defendants died during the course of proceedings.

It is believed approximately 150,000 university students, intellectuals and politicians were killed throughout Mengistu's rule from 1974 to 1991. Mengistu has been in exile in Zimbabwe since rebels forced him from power in 1991. He is likely to avoid serving his sentence as Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has said he will not deport Mengistu if he refrains from participating in political activity. Chief prosecutor Yosef Kiros may appeal the sentence since he hoped Mengistu would receive the death penalty. AP has more. BBC News has additional coverage.

[JURIST] The Communist Party of China (CPC) [official backgrounder] promised Wednesday to confront gambling, corruption, embezzlement, and fraud within the government, following a speech [People's Daily report] Tuesday by Chinese President Hu Jintao [People's Daily backgrounder] where the president hailed reforms accomplished in 2006 and vowed to build a cleaner Communist party in China. Hu's speech focused on four measures: improving ethics education, reform of both the official system and procedures, arresting high-profile offenders, and focusing on the offenses that most affect the public interest.

In October, China's chief justice called for judicial reform [JURIST report] in the face of court corruption and systemic failures to implement court orders, several days after three Chinese judges were arrested for bribery [JURIST report]. A Chinese official was arrested in September in connection with a pension plan scandal [JURIST report], and in June, the Communist Party announced increases in jail time and fines for those responsible for industrial accidents and white collar crimes. AP has more. The People's Daily has local coverage.

[JURIST] The trial of six men charged with attempting to bomb a London subway and bus [JURIST report] on July 21, 2005 began Thursday, with the jury being sworn in to try the six men on charges including conspiracy to murder, possession of explosives, attempted murder, and conspiracy to cause explosions. No one was injured during the July 21 attempts, which occurred two weeks after the devastating July 7 London bombings [JURIST news archive] killed 56 people - including four suicide bombers - and injured some 700. Eleven other people have been charged with assisting the six accused terrorists, and will be tried later in the year during a separate trial. The trial was previously scheduled to begin [JURIST report] last September.

No charges have been brought in connection with the deadly July 7 subway bombings. AP has more. BBC News has local coverage.

[JURIST] Cisco filed a lawsuit [press release] against Apple, Inc. on Wednesday in federal court, requesting injunctive relief from Apple's use of the name "iPhone," to which Cisco has held the trademark since 2000. Apple CEO Steve Jobs unveiled [recorded video; press release] Apple's iPhone [product website] at a San Francisco tradeshow on Tuesday, despite not having agreed to the terms proposed by Cisco for use of the name "iPhone." The two companies had been negotiating terms of the deal for several years, and were close to agreeing on terms as late as Tuesday, hours before Jobs made the announcement. A spokesperson for Apple noted that Cisco's iPhone [product materials] does not use a cellular network, as planned for Apple's iPhone, but rather uses the Skype internet phone service, thus making the Apple iPhone materially different and not subject to Cisco's trademark. Jobs also announced Tuesday that Apple Computer has changed their name to Apple, Inc.

Last May, then-named Apple Computer succeeded in a UK lawsuit [JURIST report] brought by Apple Corps, the record label owned by the Beatles and their families, which ruled that Apple Computer did not breach a 1991 trademark agreement with Apple Corps when the computer company began promoting music products. AP has more.