US Ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad and Gen. George Casey , commander of US forces in Iraq, have promised an open investigation into the rape and murder of a young woman and her family in Mahmudiya , saying the alleged acts were "absolutely inexcusable and unacceptable." The rare joint statement from the two leaders issued [...]

The UN Human Rights Council on Thursday denounced recent Israeli military operations in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and voted to approve a resolution calling on Israelis and Palestinians to refrain from violence against civilians, saying the Israeli offensive breaches international humanitarian law. In the resolution, the Council expressed deep concern at the breaches [...]

Howard M. Engle MD et al. v. Liggett Group, Supreme Court of Florida, July 6, 2006 . Read the full text of the opinion . Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here,

Perdue v. O'Kelley, Supreme Court of Georgia, July 6, 2006 . Read the full text of the ruling . Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here.

Former US Army soldier Steven Green pleaded not guilty Thursday in US District Court to rape and murder charges in connection with the death of an Iraqi woman and three of her relatives in Mahmudiya in March. Green also agreed that his case would be prosecuted in the federal Western District of Kentucky after waiving [...]

Daniel Hernandez v. Victor L. Robles , New York Court of Appeals, July 6, 2006 . Read the full text of the ruling . Reported in JURIST's Paper Chase here.

Lawyers for Saddam Hussein turned to the International Criminal Court (ICC) Thursday, asking it to investigate alleged violations of law regarding his treatment and that of defense witnesses by US personnel. A copy of the application obtained by AFP argued that the Iraqi trial of Saddam was illegal and that Saddam was "a prisoner of [...]

Five special rapporteurs making up the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on Thursday called on the US to set a date for closing its detention facility at Guantanamo Bay . In a statement, the group urged the US "to develop a detailed plan of [...]

Mexican ruling party candidate Felipe Calderon narrowly won Sunday's presidential election with some 220,000 votes more than leftist candidate Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador , according to official results released Thursday by Mexico's Federal Electoral Institute (IFE) . Lopez Obrador said, however, that he would challenge the result in court, pledging to petition the Electoral Tribunal [...]

The European Parliament adopted an interim report Thursday that agrees with earlier findings by the Council of Europe (COE) that European states were complicit in alleged incidents of CIA extraordinary rendition . The report criticizes European nations for failing to act or complying with CIA efforts to illegally seize terror suspects on European territory, as [...]