FREDERICK K. COX INTERNATIONAL LAW CENTER Founder/Advisor Michael P. Scharf

War Crimes Prosecution Watch Volume 11 – Issue 16 October 17, 2016

Editor-in-Chief Kevin J. Vogel Technical Editor-in-Chief Jeradon Z. Mura Managing Editors Dustin Narcisse Victoria Sarant

War Crimes Prosecution Watch is a bi-weekly e-newsletter that compiles official documents and articles from major news sources detailing and analyzing salient issues pertaining to the investigation and prosecution of war crimes throughout the world. To subscribe, please email warcrimeswatch@pilpg.org and type “subscribe” in the subject line.

Opinions expressed in the articles herein represent the views of their authors and are not necessarily those of the War Crimes Prosecution Watch staff, the Case Western Reserve University School of Law or Public International Law & Policy Group.

Contents

AFRICA

CENTRAL AFRICA

Central African Republic

• International Justice Monitor: Bemba Lays Out Grounds for Appeal Against ICC Conviction
• UN News Centre: Central African Republic needs support to tackle ‘spoilers,’ other challenges – UN peacekeeping chief
• Reuters: Fresh fighting in central African republic kills at least 10

Sudan & South Sudan

• Yahoo! News: Bashir Extends Ceasefire in 3 Sudan Conflict Regions
• UN News Centre: UN Mission ‘Extremely Concerned’ over Increased Incidents of Violence across South Sudan
• Yahoo! News: Russia: No South Sudan Arms Embargo Needed after UN chief’s Report

Democratic Republic of the Congo

• Daily Mail: ICC to hold first public hearings into war crimes reparations
• International Justice Monitor: Bemba Lays Out Grounds for Appeal Against ICC Conviction

WEST AFRICA

Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast)

• Reuters: Ivory Coast President Asks Parliament To ‘Turn Page’ With New Constitution
• Daily Mail: I.Coast Former First Lady Distributed Arms, Court Hears
• Daily Mail: Ivory Coast Lawmakers Approve New Constitution Draft

Lake Chad Region — Chad, Nigeria, Niger, and Cameroon

• UNHCR: Freed From Boko Haram, Nigerians Still Need Help
• TVC News: U.N.’S Ban Says Niger Must Reinforce Refugee Camps After Attack
• Global Times: AU Strongly Condemns Attack On Refugee Camp In Niger
• Yahoo News: Merkel Pledges Support For Niger To Fight Human Traffickers, Militants
• Newsweek: Nigerian State Government ‘Acting Like Boko Haram,’ Says Shiite Spokesman
• International Business Times: Eight Killed In Suspected Boko Haram Attack In Borno State

Mali

• UN News Centre: Stalled Peace Process, Fresh Ceasefire Violations Risk Mali’s Stability – UN Peacekeeping Chief
• allAfrica: Africa: Merkel’s Migration Mission to Mali
• The Local: Suicide Bomber Dies In Attack On Swedish Troops In Mali

EAST AFRICA

Uganda

• AllAfrica: The Monitor: Uganda: Online Violence Against Women Soar – Human Rights Commission Boss
• Anadolu Agency: Ugandan rebels face death for crimes against humanity
• AllAfrica: The Monitor: Uganda: Kabamba Attack – Witness Disowns Evidence

Kenya

• All Africa: Kenya: Six Killed in Mandera Shabaab Attack, 27 Rescued
• Deutshche Welle: Kenya accused of breaking international law for forcibly repatriating Somali refugees
• All Africa: Kenya: Stateless Makonde in Four-Day March to State House to Meet Uhuru in Search of Citizenship

Rwanda (International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda)

• Human Rights Watch: Rwanda: Opposition Activist Missing
• The Ferret: Experts say Scotland Must Engage Rwanda on Human Rights Abuses
• The Monitor: Rwanda: EU Tells Off Rwanda Over Ingabire Trial

Somalia

• Anadolu Agency : Somalia: Bomb blast in Mogadishu kills 3, wounds 7
• Military Times: Attacks on U.S. troops in Somalia leads to airstrikes on al-Shabab
• All Africa: Somalia: Bomb Hits Jubbaland State Intelligence HQ in Kismayo
• Garowe Online: Somalia: AMISOM convoy targeted in landmine blast
• Dawn: Al Shabaab kills six Christians in Kenya
• Garowe Online: Somalia: Puntland government condemns provoked attacks in Galkayo
• News 24: At least 6 killed in clashes between rival Somali regions
• Daily Nation: Dodging bullets and bombs while covering the war
• All Africa: Somalia: Three Dead, Fifteen Injured in Qoryoley Bombardment
• Garowe Online: Somalia: Al Shabaab targets African Union base in Qoryoley town

NORTH AFRICA

Libya

• Amnesty International: Libya: Civilians trapped in Benghazi in desperate conditions as fighting encroaches
• UN News Centre: Libya: As situation worsens, UN envoy calls for pause in fighting near Benghazi
• The Wall Street Journal: In Coastal Libya, Islamic State Prepared to Build a Nation

EUROPE

Court of Bosnia & Herzegovina, War Crimes Chamber

• B92: Woman arrested for brutal wartime murder of boy in Bosnia
• Cleveland.com: Suspected Bosnian war criminal awarded by Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel in 2014 deported to Serbia
• Balkan Insight: Bosnian Serb Soldier Jailed for Wartime Rape

Domestic Prosecutions In The Former Yugoslavia

• Balkan Insight: New Kosovo Court Confronts Witness Protection Fears
• Balkan Insight: Kosovo Serb Leader Ivanovic Appeals Against Conviction

MIDDLE EAST AND ASIA

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant

• Reuters: Turkey has right to combat threats in Syria and Iraq: Erdogan
• U.S. Department of Defense: Coalition Strikes Hit ISIL Terrorists in Syria, Iraq

Iraq

• The Daily Beast: Pentagon Paid for Fake ‘Al Qaeda’ Videos
• CNN: Iraq: Families flee ahead of battle for ISIS-held Hawija
• Iraqi News: Airstrike kills 8 ISIS militants, destroys Diwan al-Hisba headquarters in Mosul
• RT News: ISIS demolishes Assyrian church in culture-rich Nineveh, Iraq
• Al Jazeera: ‘Booby-trapped’ ISIL drone in deadly Iraq attack

Syria

• Euronews: Johnson slams Russian action in Syria as bombs rain down on Aleppo
• Reuters: At least 10 people killed in blast in northern Syria: Observatory
• Reuters: Rebels shell school in Syria’s Deraa killing five people: monitor, state media
• BBC News: Boris Johnson: Russia risks becoming pariah over Syria bombing
• ABC News: New Challenges in Syria as Militants Weaponized Drones
• Washington Post: Activists say death toll rises in bombings of Syria’s Aleppo

Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia

• The Cambodia Daily: Khmer Rouge Marriages Not Forced, Expert Says
• News Deeply: Forced Marriage and Rape: The Legacy of the Khmer Rouge on Trial

Yemen

• Human Rights Watch: International investigation on Yemen key to Council’s credibility
• Reuters: Activists cry foul as U.N. decides against Yemen rights probe
• Relief Web: Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Stephen O’Brien: Statement on Yemen
• CNN: Yemen: The ‘forgotten war’ cloaked in the shadow of Syria
• BBC: Yemen conflict: US ‘could be implicated in war crimes’

Special Tribunal for Lebanon

• The Daily Star: STL witness details role as Rafik Hariri bodyguard
• The Daily Star: STL defense casts doubt on bodyguard’s statements
• The Daily Star: STL analyst back on the stand to defend maps

Bangladesh International Crimes Tribunal

• Human Rights Watch: Bangladesh: Stop ‘Kneecapping’ Detainees
• Bdnews24.com: Bangladesh parliament decides to impound assets of war criminals, killers of founding father
• Bdnews24.com: Bangladesh war crimes suspect dies at Dhaka hospital
• Hindustan Times: Pak protest on Bangladesh war crimes trial prompted Saarc pull out: Hasina
• Asia Times: Dhaka to back India if war breaks out

War Crimes Investigations in Burma

• The New York Times: Dozens Believed Killed as Violence Erupts in Myanmar
• Time: Thousands of People Have Been ‘Displaced By Fighting’ in Eastern Burma
• The Telegraph: Many dead as hundreds of men wielding pistols and swords assail troops in Burma’s restive Rakhine
• Aljazeera: Myanmar: Fears of violence after deadly border attack

Israel and Palestine

• Amnesty International: Israel/OPT: Pattern of unlawful killings reveals shocking disregard for human life
• U.S. Department of State: Approval of New West Bank Settlement
• The Times of Israel: International Criminal Court team visits Israel, West Bank
• Addameer: PHROC Strongly Condemns the Attack Against Palestinian Civilians by PA Security Forces.
• International Middle East Media Center News: Israeli Piracy against Al-Zaitounah Boat to Gaza; PCHR Denounces the Attack and International Silence
• The New York Times: ICC Probe to Target Both Israelis and Palestinians

North Korea

• Project Syndicate: No Appeasement for North Korea
• The New York Times: In Rare Encounter, a Private U.S. Delegation Visits North Korea
• Business Insider: ‘This is no longer something that can be easily dismissed:’ Satellite imagery shows North Korea may be preparing for a nuclear test

AMERICAS

North & Central America

• Washington Post: Judge orders reopening of El Salvador military massacre case
• Reuters News Agency: Exclusive: As Saudis bombed Yemen, U.S. worried about legal blowback
• BBC News: Yemen conflict: US ‘could be implicated in war crimes’

South America

• The Wall Street Journal: FARC Says It Still Wants Peace, Despite Colombian Voters’ Rejection of Accord
• The Globe and Mail: Colombian activists set up tent city to demand peace deal
• The Bogota Post: Colombian victims: ‘It is peace, not conflict that is the real challenge’

TOPICS

Truth and Reconciliation Commission

• Nepali Times: Toothless Commission
• myRepublic.com: SC stays TRC guideline for placing cases on hold
• Dawn: Senators call for backchannel talks with India
• CBC News: Treaty 7 flag could be flown at Calgary City Hall

Terrorism

• Reuters: Bulgaria detains French terrorism suspect
• The Wall Street Journal: Two Brussels Police Officers Stabbed in ‘Terrorist’ Attack
• ABC News: UN Chief Says Death Penalty for Terrorism Often Unfair
• The Intercept: U.S. Military Operations Are Biggest Motivation for Homegrown Terrorists, FBI Study Finds
• Military Times: France creates National Guard to battle terrorism
• The Guardian: Paris attacks: Salah Abdeslam’s lawyers ‘give up his defence’
• CNN: Syrian Refugee in Germany ‘Attack Plan’ Kills Himself in Custody

Piracy

• AllAfrica.com: Somalia: Japan Navy Steps Up War on Somalia Piracy With Base in Djibouti
• DW News: West Africa’s tough battle with piracy
• IOL News: Togo official slates inaccurate piracy statistics
• Hellenic Shipping News Worldwide: Maritime agency calls for tough actions to end piracy off Somalia

Gender-Based Violence

• Hong Kong Free Press: Over 30 per cent of college students in China have experienced sexual violence or harassment – survey
• AllAfrica: Nigeria: Frequency of Domestic Violence in Nigeria Alarming, Medical Women, Others Lament
• Global Times: South Sudan strives to end sexual, gender-based violence
• CNN: Pakistan passes legislation against ‘honor killings’
• Huffington Post: Gender-Based Violence: Not Just About Gender

Commentary and Perspectives

• Jewish Telegraphic Agency: On 70th anniversary of Nuremberg trials, US attorney general lauds recognition of rape as war crime
• Miami Herald: The biggest losers in Colombia’s referendum: FARC rebels
• The Washington Post: Putin and Assad could face justice for war crimes in Syria
• Just Security: Why French President’s Threat of War Crimes Prosecutions against Russia, Syria Rings Hollow-But Needn’t
• The New York Times: America’s Moral Duty in Yemen

WORTH READING

• Ryan Mitchell: An International Commission of Inquiry for the South China Sea?: Defining the Law of Sovereignty to Determine the Chance for Peace
• Giovanna Gismondi: Denial of Justice: The Latest Indigenous Land Disputes Before the European Court of Human Rights and the Need for an Expansive Interpretation of Protocol 1

Author: Impunity Watch Archive