Two factors, among others, help explain the government’s decision to charge Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev with the use of a WMD: The charge is seen by prosecutors as relatively easy to prove, and it can be punished by the death penalty. This highlights the irrelevance of a dispute in the U.S. Senate that is holding up important new anti-nuclear and anti-radiological terrorism legislation. more
In an email interview, Sudip Chaudhuri, an economics professor at the Indian Institute of Management in Calcutta specializing in patents and the pharmaceutical industry, explained the background and likely impact of an Indian Supreme Court ruling allowing the continued production of generic drugs. more
In an email interview, Harry Rhea, assistant professor of criminal justice at Florida International University and author of the book “The United States and International Criminal Tribunals: An Introduction,” discussed U.S.-ICC cooperation and how the U.S. can bolster the court without joining it. more
Despite action by Iran, Syria and North Korea to block adoption of the Arms Trade Treaty, the first international pact to regulate conventional arms sales across borders, the draft treaty is expected to pass the U.N. General Assembly overwhelmingly. more
Amid continuing international armed conflict with nonstate actors, including the recent French intervention in Mali, questions about the treatment of terrorism suspects arrested during military operations remain unresolved. The U.S. approach has made it easier to hold terrorism suspects without the burdens of a criminal trial but has also created the problem of prolonged, open-ended imprisonment. more
Last Friday’s Organization of American States (OAS) General Assembly session showcased a push led by Venezuela, Ecuador, Nicaragua and Bolivia to reform the Inter-American human rights system, which they argue is biased in the service of U.S. interests. But their proposed reforms may serve at best to direct attention away from their own human rights records, and at worst to cripple the system altogether. more
In an email interview, William Schabas, a professor of international law at Middlesex University, explained the problems the International Criminal Court has faced in prosecuting cases. more
On Wednesday, Syrian rebels seized 21 Filipino members of a United Nations peacekeeping mission in the Golan Heights, a disputed demilitarized buffer zone between Israel and Syria that has been monitored by U.N. forces since 1974. more
Two years ago, Brazil, Germany, India and Japan gambled on a drive to win permanent seats on the United Nations Security Council, despite the failure of several similar initiatives over the past decade. This time, too, they were unable to secure a U.N. General Assembly resolution endorsing their hopes. The long-term consequences of the so-called G4’s most recent defeat could prove corrosive for the U.N. more
Duncan Brack, an expert on illegal logging at Chatham House, explained the scope of the problem and efforts to curb it in an email interview. more
In an email interview, Caroline Chatwin, a criminology lecturer at the University of Kent who researches European-level drug policy, explained the changing EU drug market and the challenges that remain for a coordinated EU-level drug policy. more
A recent report by the Open Society Justice Initiative provides new insights into the “extraordinary rendition” program the United States operated after 9/11, revealing just how widely the program swept and which countries participated. The report raises important questions about both accountability for past human rights abuses and the future of U.S. counterterrorism policy under the Obama administration. more
In an email interview, John E. Noyes, a professor of international law and the law of the sea at California Western School of Law, explained the significance of the move and how international tribunals for maritime disputes generally operate. more
In January, a trial court decided to send former Guatemalan dictator Efrain Rios Montt to trial, making Guatemala the first Latin American country to put a former head of state on trial for genocide. The trial is part of an overall regional trend over the past decade toward prosecution and away from amnesty laws. Compared to a decade ago, Latin America has come a long way in the fight against impunity. more
In an email interview, Megan Bradley, a fellow in foreign policy at the Brookings Institution, discussed the Kampala Convention. more
Since it was created in 2003, the Kimberley Process has been remarkably successful in reducing trade in conflict diamonds. In the 1990s, conflict diamonds were estimated to represent 15 percent of international trade. That proportion is now down to 0.1 percent. As it nears its 10-year anniversary, however, the process is grappling with its narrow mandate and a system that requires unanimity in decision-making. more
Latin America prides itself on being a peaceful region -- and with good reason. It is surprising, then, that border disputes continually bedevil the region. Many of these tensions remain unresolved, and when they surface, as in the example of the Nov. 19 ruling by the International Court of Justice on the case between Colombia and Nicaragua, there can be huge, often unexpected, ramifications. more
After a successful appeal at a United Nations tribunal, Croatian national hero Gen. Ante Gotovina, who led a 1995 offensive to retake a region of Croatia from Serbian militant control, was acquitted of war crimes last week. more
Ahead of a World Health Organization summit bringing 100 countries together for the first meeting of member states on falsely labeled medical products, a group of public health experts is calling for an international treaty on substandard and counterfeit medicines. more
In an email interview, Alan D. Hemmings, an environmental consultant and specialist on Antarctic governance and environmental management, discussed the bid to protect the Ross Sea. more
In an email interview, Esmond Martin, an independent wildlife trade consultant, discussed the ivory trade regime. more