The Rwandan senate has approved a bill to abolish the death penalty , according to Wednesday reports by Radio Rwanda. The bill, proposed last year by Rwandan President Paul Kagame with the support of his party and passed by the lower house of parliament last month, is expected to come into force by the end [...]

The United Kingdom and the Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL) signed an agreement Tuesday formalizing a British commitment to imprison former Liberian President Charles Taylor in Britain if Taylor is convicted by the SCSL. In June, the UK House of Commons passed the International Tribunals (Sierra Leone) Act 2007 , establishing a legal basis [...]

Jose Maria Sison, et al. v. Council of the European Union, et al., and Stichting Al-Aqsa v. Council of the European Union, et al., European Court of First Instance, July 11, 2007 . Read the full text of the Sison judgment, and the full text of the Al-Aqsa judgment. Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here.

Opinion on Video Surveillance in Public Places by Public Authorities and the Protection of Human Rights, European Commission for Democracy through Law – Council of Europe, July 11, 2007 . Read the full text of the opinion. Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here.

Former White House Political Director Sara M. Taylor refused to answer questions from the the US Senate Judiciary Committee in connection with the US Attorney firings controversy Wednesday, saying that she did not have the ability to independently "assess or question" President George W. Bush's assertion of executive privilege . Taylor said she will answer [...]

A British judge sentenced four men convicted of conspiracy to murder for the failed bomb attacks on London's subway and bus systems on July 21, 2005 to life in prison Wednesday, saying that Muktar Said Ibrahim, Yassin Omar, Ramzi Mohammed, and Hussain Osman must serve at least 40 years before they are eligible for parole. [...]

French magistrates are expected to file preliminary charges against former French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin for allegedly ordering a smear campaign against former political rival and current French President Nicolas Sarkozy , Villepin's office said Tuesday. Villepin is accused of being responsible for anonymous letters sent to a magistrate accusing Sarkozy of owning secret [...]

Eric Linge, Pitt Law '09, files from Mumbai: One year ago today, July 11, 2006, a day Indians call 7/11 (or 11/7), seven coordinated blasts within fifteen minutes tore through rail cars on Mumbai's suburban railway killing 187 people. Nineteen suspects are to stand trial for the blasts at the end of this month. Today [...]

A US military judge Tuesday refused to dismiss charges stemming from the Abu Ghraib abuse scandal against US Army Lt. Col. Steven Lee Jordan , rejecting a defense motion that the superior officer who ordered Jordan's court-martial had committed unlawful command influence . Jordan, the only commissioned officer charged in connection with the Abu Ghraib [...]

The Libyan Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld the death sentences of six foreign medics accused of knowingly infecting over 400 Libyan patients with the HIV virus. The court's decision will now be considered by the executive-controlled High Judicial Council, which will meet next week to discuss the case. The council can uphold, overrule or modify [...]