Weekly update: 07 July – 15 July 2020.
The following media round up of international legal and foreign policy issues from around the world for the period 07 July – 15 July 2020.
The Guernica Group will provide weekly media updates from the International Criminal Court, European Court of Human Rights, United Nations, European Union and other sources. Should you wish to contribute or submit a media summary, opinion piece or blog, please send to Nenad Vucijak for consideration.
Iraq – 10 July
Liz Throssell, spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights spoke on the shocking murder in Baghdad of leading researcher and security analyst Hisham al-Hushami and how it has brought into sharp relief the risks faced by people who dare to challenge powerful militias in Iraq and are vocal about pervasive impunity and corruption.
Lebanon – 10 July
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, warned of the crippling impact of the socio-economic crisis on Lebanon’s population, and urged the Government, political parties and the financial sector to work together to ensure the protection of the poorest and most vulnerable.
25th anniversary of the genocide in Srebrenica – 11 July
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, commented that this year marks the 25th anniversary of an immense human tragedy. She also stated that we marked the 25-year long journey to obtain recognition, justice and reparation for the victims of the Srebrenica genocide and other crimes against humanity recognised by international tribunals.
The three Principals of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, President Carmel Agius, Prosecutor Serge Brammertz and Registrar Abubacarr Tambadou, joined in marking the 25th commemoration of the Srebrenica genocide.
The International Criminal Court – 14 July
On 14 July, the trial in the case The Prosecutor v. Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud opened before Trial Chamber X of the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against humanity and war crimes allegedly committed in Timbuktu (Mali). Trial Chamber X is composed of Judge Antoine Kesia-Mbe Mindua, Presiding Judge, Judge Tomoko Akane and Judge Kimberly Prost.
The International Court of Justice – 14 July
On 14 July, judgment was issued in the case of Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates v. Qatar, concerning an appeal relating to the jurisdiction of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Council under Article 84 of the Convention of International Civil Aviation.
The Court unanimously rejected the appeal brought by Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the UAE on 04 July 2018 from the Decision of the Council of the ICAO, dated 29 June 2018. By fifteen to one, the Court held that the Council of the ICAO has jurisdiction to entertain the application submitted to it by the Government of the State of Qatar on 30 October 2017 and that the said application is admissible.
Bahrain – 14 July
Bahrain’s highest court, the Court of Cassation, has upheld the death penalty against two Bahraini men whose confessions were allegedly extracted under torture.
Mohamed Ramadhan and Husain Moosa Ali Moosa Mohamed were reportedly arrested without a warrant and arbitrarily detained for a bomb attack in February 2014 in which a police officer was killed. They were convicted in December 2014 and sentenced to death.
Ukraine – 14 July
A Ukrainian journalist who wrote about the alleged influence of far-right groups on a fact-checking organisation is receiving death threats, and her personal information has been published online, according to Human Rights Watch.
Egypt – 15 July
Overwhelmed and ill-equipped medical staff in Egypt are being threatened for speaking out about poor working conditions during the Covid-19 pandemic, with increasing numbers detained by a domestic security agency.
Human Rights Courts – 15 July
The European Court of Human Rights, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights have held their first online Dialogue on the Impact of Covid-19 on Human Rights.
The Dialogue between the three regional Human Rights Courts took place on 09 July 2020 and is part of the ongoing cooperation between these Courts, in the context of the San Jose Declaration (2018) and the Kampala Declaration (2019).
Venezuela – 15 July
People working in the Arco Minero del Orinoco region in Venezuela are caught up in a context of labour exploitation and high levels of violence by criminal groups that control the mines in the area, according to a report released on 15 July by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.