Conflict and Human Rights

The 40th Session of the Human Rights Council: Some Observations on State Behaviour

The 40th Session of the Human Rights Council: Some Observations on State Behaviour

The UN Human Rights Council, which was created in 2006, is currently holding its 40th Session. The HRC is the UN’s main human rights body, and is a political body...
Trump’s Invocation of Emergency Powers over Border Wall: Is It Legal?

Trump’s Invocation of Emergency Powers over Border Wall: Is It Legal?

In recent weeks, President Trump has sent signals that he is prepared to declare a national emergency in order to get his long-promised border wall built. On Jan. 4, Trump...
Universal jurisdiction to the rescue: a way forward for victims of Franco-era crimes of gender-based violence?

Universal jurisdiction to the rescue: a way forward for victims of Franco-era crimes of gender-based violence?

Between the years of 1960 and 1974, Spanish lawyer and feminist activist Lidia Falcón O’Neill was detained seven times by security police on behalf of the Franco government, because of...
ECOWAS Court Rules that use of Military Tribunals to Prosecute Civilians in Nigeria Violates Right to Fair Trial

ECOWAS Court Rules that use of Military Tribunals to Prosecute Civilians in Nigeria Violates Right to Fair Trial

On 29 June 2018 the Court of Justice for the Economic Community of West African States (‘ECOWAS Court’) handed down its judgment in the case of Gabriel Inyang & another...
State of Palestine takes United States to International Court of Justice over Jerusalem Embassy

State of Palestine takes United States to International Court of Justice over Jerusalem Embassy

In its consistent diplomatic and legal attempts to salvage the two-State solution based on international law, the State of Palestine instituted a case against the United States of America before...
Indonesia’s New Counter-Terrorism Law and the Government’s Hidden Agenda?

Indonesia’s New Counter-Terrorism Law and the Government’s Hidden Agenda?

Following the suicide bombings by attackers with links to the Islamic State in May, the Indonesian Parliament has finally approved the long-pending revisions to the counter-terrorism law. While the determination...
Coup, Constitution and the Count: Zimbabwe’s Disputed Elections

Coup, Constitution and the Count: Zimbabwe’s Disputed Elections

In November 2017, Robert Mugabe’s 38-year rule ended. At the time, I called this what it was – a coup – though popular among many Zimbabweans who thronged the streets...
India’s Reaction to the 1st UN Report on Kashmir is Unwarranted

India’s Reaction to the 1st UN Report on Kashmir is Unwarranted

On June 14, 2018, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, in recognition of the urgent need to address the flagrant violation of human rights and to...
Let’s Talk About Kashmir: The Symbolic Significance Of The UN Report On Kashmir

Let’s Talk About Kashmir: The Symbolic Significance Of The UN Report On Kashmir

On 14th June, 2018, The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights published a 49 page report, the first one ever, documenting the situation of human rights in both...
Why There is No Right of Return

Why There is No Right of Return

Previously, on this blog, Ms. Loureen Sayej wrote an interesting article entitled Palestinian Refugees and the Right of Return in International Law, arguing in favor of a right of return...
International Law Violations Underpin Tragedy in Gaza   

International Law Violations Underpin Tragedy in Gaza  

The death of 60 Palestinians under Israeli fire at the Israel-Gaza border fence on May 14 has sent palpable shockwaves through the international community. It is the greatest loss of...
Palestinian Refugees and the Right of Return in International Law

Palestinian Refugees and the Right of Return in International Law

On this 70th commemoration of the Nakba (catastrophe), Palestinian refugees and their descendants still constitute one of the largest and longest-standing unresolved refugee crises in the world, with 7.54 million...

Become A Contributor To The Blog