Uganda made international headlines this week as its Constitutional Court upheld the bulk of a draconian law that would impose the death sentence for “aggravated homosexuality.” But for LGBTQ+ activists within the country, the death penalty isn’t the only specter that looms in the judgment’s aftermath. Over the past 15 years, Ugandan authorities have endeavored [...]
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Climate protestors who attempted to create a road blockade at The Hague were detained Saturday by Dutch police. Among the protestors detained was prominent climate activist Greta Thunberg. Protesters took to the streets of The Hague demonstrating against fossil fuel subsidies on Saturday. Fossil fuel subsidies refer to government action that lowers the cost of [...]
Florida Supreme Court upholds 6-week abortion ban and allows abortion referendum for November ballot
The Florida Supreme Court ruled on Monday that the state constitution does not protect the right to abortion. The ruling in Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida vs. State of Florida allows the current 15-week abortion ban to be upheld and triggers the Heartbeat Protection Act to take effect. The Act, signed into law [...]
Yonatan Shapira is an ex-captain and pilot in the Israeli Air Force. In 2003, he helped coordinate the circulation of a letter that was signed by 27 Israeli Air Force pilots expressing their refusal to engage in Israeli military actions targeting Palestinians. Additionally, Shapira has endorsed the domestic Israeli movement supporting Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions [...]
Canada Supreme Court finds collective Indigenous rights supersede individual Charter rights
The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) upheld a rule on Thursday, requiring members of a Yukon First Nation to live in its community if they wish to serve on its council. Cindy Dickson, a Canadian citizen and member of the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation (VGFN), challenged a residency requirement imposed by the VGFN Constitution. The [...]
Egypt authorities release Al Jazeera journalists held in pretrial detention for four years
Egyptian authorities released two Al Jazeera journalists, Rabie Al-Sheikh and Bahaa Eldin Ibrahim, held in pre-trial detention for four years, the Qatar-based news outlet announced on Friday. The Egyptian journalists were both arrested on charges of spreading false information. Ibrahim was arrested at Borg El Arab Airport in Alexandria on February 22, 2020. Al Jazeera [...]
Canada Supreme Court declines to hear appeal of school that prohibited Muslim students from praying
The Supreme Court of Canada on Thursday declined to hear the appeal of a school that was found to be discriminating against its Muslim students by denying them access to prayer space. Webber Academy, a private school in Calgary, prohibited two Muslim students from publicly praying on campus, claiming that providing prayer space violated the school’s secular [...]
The Cost of Revenge: A Cantor's Critique of Israel's Response to Hamas
In the wake of the deadly Hamas terrorist attacks of Oct. 7, 2023, many of Israel’s supporters, myself included, have succumbed to the understandable impulse for violent retribution. Israel is a land that I love, both culturally as a Jew — and third-generation Holocaust survivor — and spiritually as an ordained cantor. It follows that [...]
Donald Trump's Immunity Argument From the Standpoint of International Law
The fact that a person who committed an act which constitutes a crime under international law acted as Head of State or responsible Government official does not relieve him from responsibility under international law Principles of International Law Recognized in the Charter of the Nuremberg Tribunal and in the Judgment of the Tribunal (1950) (Principle [...]
Explainer Part II: The Israel-Hamas War and the International Court of Justice
The ongoing conflict engulfing Israel and Palestine continues to raise significant issues of international law and policy. My earlier contribution focused on the jurisdiction and substantive law of the International Criminal Court (ICC). Here I address the ongoing litigation before the International Court of Justice (ICJ or Court). Because the crime of genocide can be [...]