In its ruling the ICJ decided unanimously [press release, PDF] that Colombia had sovereignty "over the islands at Alburquerque, Bajo Nuevo, East-Southeast Cays, Quitasueno, Roncador, Serrana and Serranilla." The court recognized that the boundary lines they appropriated effectively divided the relevant in Nicaragua's favor, but found that the results were not disproportionate enough to create inequity. Nicaragua originally brought legal action against Colombia in December 2001, claiming that Colombia had no legal control of the islands. Public hearings were finally held between April and May of this year. A portion of Nicaragua's argument was rejected in 2007, when the ICJ upheld a 1928 treaty between Nicaragua and Colombia [JURIST report] establishing that Colombia owned the islands of San Andres, Providencia and Santa Catalina.

Egypt has undergone political turmoil since its revolution [JURIST feature] last year. Earlier this week Egyptian courts suspended work [JURIST report] to protest Morsi's recent decree, which removed judicial review of his actions and vastly expanded his power. Morsi had agreed to meet with the judges [JURIST report] earlier this week to discuss the decree. In October Human Rights Watch [advocacy website] urged Egypt to amend its proposed constitution [JURIST report] to comply with international treaties. In August a lawyer in Egypt filed an appeal challenging a declaration by Morsi granting himself complete legislative and executive power [JURIST reports]. In July, a few days after he was sworn in as president, Morsi issued a decree [JURIST reports] calling the Egyptian parliament back into session, despite a previous ruling by the Supreme Constitutional Court dissolving parliament after finding that one-third of its members were elected illegally. The court suspended Morsi's decree two days later, after which Morsi vowed that he would respect the ruling [JURIST reports]. Days before its dissolution, the Egyptian parliament elected a new constitutional council after lawmakers finally reached an agreement [JURIST reports] on the political composition of the council. In April the country's Administrative Court temporarily suspended [JURIST report] the work of the Egyptian Constituent Assembly after ruling in favor of a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the formation of the panel.

Concern surrounding the trial has been growing as the trial and election draw closer. In October the ICC called for complete cooperation [JURIST report] from the Kenyan government in the investigation and trial process. In June the ICC expressed its desire to start the two Kenyan trials simultaneously [JURIST report] to avoid any appearance of bias in the presidential election. In May the appeals chamber of the ICC rejected [JURIST report] the jurisdiction challenges in the two cases presented by the defense, clearing the way for trial. The defense lawyers had argued that the court lacks subject matter jurisdiction over the cases. The appeal stemmed from the pre-trial chamber's decision to confirm the charges [JURIST report] against the four men in January. The ICC claimed jurisdiction over the case despite Kenya's calls for dismissal [JURIST report].

Tensions have increased between Israel and Palestine recently. Last week Israel decided to build 3,000 new housing units in the West Bank [Jerusalem Post report] in response to the UN vote on Thursday recognizing Palestinian statehood [JURIST report]. Earlier last month, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay [official profile] pressured Israel to avoid strikes on civilian structures [JURIST report] in Gaza. This came only several days after Pillay called for official peace talks between the two sides [JURIST report]. In August, Amnesty International [advocacy website] called on Israel [JURIST report] to investigate its treatment of Palestinian detainees, alleging that two had been mistreated.