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Category: Law/Crime

Can the government of Mexico bring the U.S. gun industry to book?

Can the government of Mexico bring the U.S. gun industry to book?

John Cassidy writes: The history of U.S. gun-control efforts is largely dispiriting. Yes, there have been some examples of progress, such as the spread of “red flag” laws, which allow state courts to temporarily disarm individuals who are considered a threat. At the federal level, though, the gun lobby has long exercised an effective veto. Just last month, Republicans in the Senate blocked a bill that would have banned assault weapons and introduced universal background checks for gun purchases. Over…

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South Africa says all states must stop funding Israel’s military

South Africa says all states must stop funding Israel’s military

Reuters reports: All states have an obligation to stop funding and facilitating Israel’s military actions in Gaza after the World Court made clear those actions could be genocidal, South Africa’s foreign minister said on Wednesday. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) last week ordered Israel to take all measures within its power to prevent its troops from committing genocide and take steps to improve the humanitarian situation of Palestinians in Gaza, in a case brought by South Africa. It stopped…

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Disturbing bill would let Arizona legislators ignore election results

Disturbing bill would let Arizona legislators ignore election results

The Daily Beast reports: An Arizona lawmaker who signed on to be a “fake elector” for Donald Trump after the former president lost his bid for a second term has introduced a bill that would allow members of the statehouse to overturn future election results that they don’t like. The bill, formally known as Senate Concurrent Resolution 1014 and sponsored by state Sen. Anthony Kern, seeks to bypass the popular vote altogether. “[I]t is the responsibility of the Arizona Secretary…

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Unless Israel changes course, it could be legally culpable for mass starvation

Unless Israel changes course, it could be legally culpable for mass starvation

Alex de Waal writes: Gaza is experiencing mass starvation like no other in recent history. Before the outbreak of fighting in October, food security in Gaza was precarious, but very few children – less than 1% – suffered severe acute malnutrition, the most dangerous kind. Today, almost all Gazans, of any age, anywhere in the territory, are at risk. There is no instance since the second world war in which an entire population has been reduced to extreme hunger and…

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The ICJ ruling’s hidden diplomacy

The ICJ ruling’s hidden diplomacy

David Kaye writes: The court’s order is, despite its apparent moderation, damning. It has allowed litigation to move forward on South Africa’s claim that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, placing a virtual sword of Damocles over not only Israel in its future conduct in Gaza, but also those, such as the United States, that have given it such strong support. It has found plausible South Africa’s assertion that Palestinian rights must be protected against genocidal acts. Even Israel’s appointee…

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Republicans now say it might be okay to ignore the Supreme Court

Republicans now say it might be okay to ignore the Supreme Court

Aaron Blake writes: A consequential development of the Trump era is what increasingly looks like the Republicans’ acrimonious divorce from the rule of law. The party that once prided itself as the law-and-order side has leaped headlong into highly speculative theories about the “weaponization” of the justice system, spurred by former president Donald Trump. Both Trump and his former lawyer Rudy Giuliani recently flouted civil defamation verdicts against them by continuing to defame their victims — cheered on by many…

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Ret. Judge J. Michael Luttig urges Supreme Court to disqualify Trump from office

Ret. Judge J. Michael Luttig urges Supreme Court to disqualify Trump from office

CNN reports: A former conservative federal appellate judge is urging the Supreme Court to keep Donald Trump off the ballot, arguing the ex-president’s effort to cling to power after his 2020 election loss was “broader” than South Carolina’s secession from the US that triggered the Civil War. “Mr. Trump tried to prevent the newly-elected President Biden from governing anywhere in the United States. The South Carolina secession prevented the newly-elected President Lincoln from governing only in that State,” J. Michael…

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In federal court, Palestinians accuse Biden of complicity in genocide

In federal court, Palestinians accuse Biden of complicity in genocide

The Intercept reports: At the hearing [in Oakland, CA], U.S. Judge Jeffrey S. White went to some length to state the impact of Israel’s war on Palestinian civilians and the U.S. government’s support for it but indicated the case might ultimately hinge on questions of jurisdiction. “The Palestinian people are living in fear and without food, medical care, clean water, or sufficient humanitarian aid. Defendants — the president of the United States and his secretaries of state and defense —…

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Trump’s secret plan to expand presidential immunity to ‘King George’ levels

Trump’s secret plan to expand presidential immunity to ‘King George’ levels

Rolling Stone reports: This month, Donald Trump’s lawyers have argued in a federal appeals court that he, as a former American president, is “absolutely” immune from criminal prosecution, possibly even if he were to order the assassination of his political enemies. But the arguments that Trump’s lawyers are currently litigating in public are just a preview of Trump and his allies’ private plans to dramatically expand presidential immunity, if he defeats Joe Biden in the 2024 election. According to two…

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American mercenaries hired by UAE to kill in Yemen

American mercenaries hired by UAE to kill in Yemen

  American mercenaries, hired by the UAE to kill in Yemen, have spoken candidly on camera for the first time in an investigation by BBC Arabic. At a time when Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping have highlighted the international dimensions of the Yemeni conflict, the investigation also reveals how US mercenaries trained Emirati officers to kill the UAE’s political enemies in Yemen. These extra-judicial killings, conducted in the name of counter-terrorism, started in 2015 and continue to this day.

International Court of Justice says Israel must immediately stop killing Palestinians in Gaza

International Court of Justice says Israel must immediately stop killing Palestinians in Gaza

By fifteen votes to two, the International Court of Justice indicated the following provisional measures: The State of Israel shall, in accordance with its obligations under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, in relation to Palestinians in Gaza, take all measures within its power to prevent the commission of all acts within the scope of Article II of this Convention, in particular: (a) killing members of the group; (b) causing serious bodily or mental…

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This momentous ICJ ruling may be brushed aside by Israel but its allies can’t afford to ignore it

This momentous ICJ ruling may be brushed aside by Israel but its allies can’t afford to ignore it

Steve Crawshaw writes: Israel will no doubt continue to pour scorn on the international court of justice (ICJ) in The Hague in the days and weeks to come. “Hague Shmague” was the first response from the security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir. But the provisional measures ordered by the world court today are historic, by any measure. The requirement that Israel must take steps to prevent genocidal acts, prevent and punish incitement to genocide, and report back on its actions within a…

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South Africa’s genocide case is a diplomatic win, after ‘damning’ verdict against Israel

South Africa’s genocide case is a diplomatic win, after ‘damning’ verdict against Israel

Reuters reports: South Africa’s genocide case against Israel may have ruffled feathers in the capitals of vital Western trading partners, but it has boosted the country’s standing as a champion of the downtrodden Global South. That gamble is likely to pay off, thanks to renewed rivalry for Africa’s minerals and U.N. votes between the West, China and Russia, turbocharged by Russia’s war on Ukraine. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) rejected Israel’s petition to throw out the case on Friday,…

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Israeli ICJ judge once supported use of hostages as ‘bargaining card’ but now votes to prevent genocide

Israeli ICJ judge once supported use of hostages as ‘bargaining card’ but now votes to prevent genocide

It is noteworthy that even the Israeli judge, Aharon Barak, joined the International Court of Justice (making it 16-1) on the points of preventing and punishing incitement to genocidal acts and allowing enough humanitarian aid to stop severe deprivation. https://t.co/2tqmN3cg7J — Kenneth Roth (@KenRoth) January 26, 2024 In 1998, the New York Times reported: A three-judge panel of the Supreme Court today ended the secrecy of a four-month-old ruling in which it acknowledged and condoned the fact that Israel was…

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Defendants Biden, Blinken, and Austin accused in federal court of complicity in genocide

Defendants Biden, Blinken, and Austin accused in federal court of complicity in genocide

Having started my day with @CIJ_ICJ's momentous ruling that SA’s genocide claim against IS is “plausible” & its order of PM, I'll now head to the US Federal Court to testify against defendants @POTUS, @SecBlinken & @SecDef for their failure to prevent & complicity in #Genocide. pic.twitter.com/MezIGIncwn — Ahmed Abofoul | أحمد أبو فول (@AhmedAbofoul) January 26, 2024 Time reports: A federal court case filed against President Joe Biden and two U.S. cabinet officials for allegedly being complicit in Israel’s…

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Israel tries to rebut genocide charge by declassifying cherry-picked cabinet decisions

Israel tries to rebut genocide charge by declassifying cherry-picked cabinet decisions

The New York Times reports: Israel has declassified more than 30 secret orders made by government and military leaders, which it says rebut the charge that it committed genocide in Gaza, and instead show Israeli efforts to diminish deaths among Palestinian civilians. The release of the documents, copies of which were reviewed by The New York Times, follows a petition to the International Court of Justice by South Africa, which has accused Israel of genocide. Much of South Africa’s case…

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