[JURIST] The Egyptian Presidential Election Commission [BBC backgrounder] late Thursday rejected a request [JURIST report] by leading opposition candidate Ayman Nour [Wikipedia profile] to rerun Wednesday's presidential elections after reports of widespread fraud and procedural violations [JURIST report]. An early count of votes gives Mubarak the lead in the polls. Reuters has more. The Egyptian Gazette has local coverage in English.

[JURIST] Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon [Wikipedia backgrounder] Thursday night postponed the demolition of synagogues in the evacuated Gaza Strip [Wikipedia backgrounder] despite an Israeli High Court [official website] decision earlier Thursday to permit the destruction of synagogues that could not be dismantled [Reuters report]. Following Israeli disengagement [IDF materials], Gaza is now under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority [official website]. Sharon complied with a request by Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz [BBC backgrounder], who suggested trying to find ways to avert the tearing down of the structures. The delay follows a Wednesday high court ruling [JURIST report] that the Israeli government ascertain whether or not preservation of the synagogues is possible. A final decision on destruction will be made at a Israeli cabinet meeting on Sunday. The Jerusalem Post has local coverage.

[JURIST] A US military spokesman said Thursday that a hunger strike of prisoners at the US terror-suspect detention camp at Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] has entered its second month. Some prisoners are now being force-fed via tubes and through medical assistance. The number of hunger strikers has risen to 87 - a week ago, before new hunger strikers joined [JURIST report], it was reported that 76 inmates were refusing food. The New York-based Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) [advocacy website] issued a report [CCR text] Thursday giving details of the hunger strikes that have broken out at the prison since 2002, and demanded that authorities adhere to Geneva Convention [text] standards for treatment of civilian detainees. CCR says [CCR press release] that the strikes have been triggered by alleged beatings of prisoners, denial of basic needs, and lack of fair trials. AFP has more.

[JURIST] In Thursday's environmental law news, California has joined 14 other states suing the US Department of Energy (DOE) [official website], alleging that the agency is 6 to 13 years behind schedule in updating efficiency standards for some household and commercial appliance categories and has failed to issue any new efficiency standards at all since January 2001. The 1987 Federal Energy Policy and Conservation Act requires the DOE to periodically review and strengthen efficiency standards. The Sacramento Bee has more.

In other environmental law news,

• The California Air Resources Board [official website] is having a public hearing [webcast of hearing] to discuss and act on a proposal that would temporarily relax gas pollution standards in the state. Following Hurricane Katrina which damaged oil rigs and refineries, the US Environmental Protection Agency announced that it would allow the distribution of gasoline with a lower evaporative standard [JURIST report] than required by some states. A number of states with tighter standards subsequently relaxed them. The relaxed standard in CA could increase local ozone levels by 1 percent, which could violate federal air pollution standards. The Los Angeles Times has more.
  
  
• A West Virginia circuit court [official website] is hearing testimony in a case that could force the Mingo Logan mining company [corporate website] to provide water to households whose wells have gone dry due to longwall mining. A 1992 federal law [text] requires coal operators to replace water supplies that underground mining operations damage or destroy. The residents allege that the company's attempts to provide water, namely, dwelling new wells and setting up large water holding tanks, have been inadequate. They ask that public lines are run to each house and that the company pay each household’s costs for 30 years of public water service. The case is expected to go to the jury on Friday. The Charleston Gazette has more.
  

[JURIST] On a visit to the stricken Gulf Coast region with Vice President Dick Cheney, US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales Thursday outlined priorities for a new Hurricane Katrina Fraud Task Force set up in the Justice Department to deter, investigate and prosecute disaster-related federal crimes like charity and insurance fraud, identity theft, and government benefit fraud. Department officials familiar with the aftermath of other large-scale disasters - for instance, Hurricane Ivan [Wikipedia backgrounder] in 2004 and the September 11 attacks - expect some people will take undue advantage of need and public generosity following Hurricane Katrina [JURIST news archive]. Fraudulent donation solicitations are already reported to be circulating on the Internet [FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center alert, PDF; NYT report]. The Task Force will include members of the DOJ, FBI, the Federal Trade Commission, the Post Office, and other agencies. Read the DOJ press release.

[JURIST] US Immigration Judge Kenneth Hurewitz has ruled that Basuyouy Mamdouh Ebaid should not be deported because he would likely be tortured in his native Egypt. Ebaid was found on a terrorist watch list for praising Osama bin Laden [Wikipedia backgrounder] and suicide bombers [Wikipedia backgrounder] after police arrested him for selling liquor to minors in his restaurant. Although Ebaid has not been charged with any terrorism-related crimes, federal officials want him deported after he admitted buying marijuana for personal use in 1999. In ruling against the government, Hurewitz cited an official US State Department human rights report [text] detailing Egypt's history of torturing terror suspects. The judge's concern echos those articulated by critics of new UK deportation rules for foreign extremists [JURIST report]; Human Rights Watch recently declared [BBC report] that "[s]ending suspects to a country where they are likely to be tortured is strictly prohibited under international law," and in particular the UN Convention Against Torture [text]. If US Department of Homeland Security officials do not appeal the Sept. 1 ruling, Ebaid will likely be freed. Aljazeera has more.

[JURIST] Swiss authorities have announced that they are investigating four people in connection with the now defunct UN Oil-for-Food program [official website; JURIST news archive], all of whom are suspected of money laundering and bribery. The four suspects have not been identified, but are said to be non-Swiss citizens who have had their assets in Swiss bank accounts frozen. AP has more. The Swiss investigation comes after the Independent Inquiry Committee [official website] into the program released its final report [text] Wednesday, which concluded that several parties shared responsibility for the program's mismanagement - including the UN Secretariat, UN Security Council, UN agencies, national governments and private companies and individuals. After receiving the IIC report, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan accepted responsibility for the program's failure [JURIST report; Annan statement], saying "as chief administrative officer, I have to take responsibility for the failings revealed, both in the implementation of the Programme and, more generally, in the functioning of the Secretariat." On Thursday, Annan sent a letter [UN News report] to all UN staff, calling for renewed dedication to the organization's ideals and stressing the importance of enacting management reforms. US Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton [official profile] has said the US will review the IIC report in an effort to make proposals on reforming and improving the UN. Bolton said the US may not agree with all of the committee's recommendations, but hopes the report will allow greater auditing and management controls [State Department press release], suggestions which have previously met international resistance. UN reform is anticipated to be a large focus of the upcoming 2005 World Summit [official website].

[JURIST] Leading Thursday's states brief, the Washington Supreme Court ruled [text] today that lawmakers did not violate the state constitution or a teacher-pay initiative by eliminating state financing for one of three paid non-classroom "learning improvement days." The lawsuit, filed by the Washington Education Association [association website] and teachers and taxpayers from several districts, argued [WEA press release] that the move violated the constitution's requirement for full funding of basic education and Initiative 732 which requires annual cost-of-living increases for teachers. The court found that learning improvement days are not necessarily a component of the basis education to be provided by the state and that Initiative 732 should be calculated on the base of 180 days, not counting training days. Assistant Attorney General David Stolier said the decision was important in defining the Legislature's power to set education policy and goals. AP has more.

In other state legal news ...

• 15 states, including California, New York [Attorney General press release] and Illinois, have filed a lawsuit against the US Department of Energy [official website], alleging that the department is violating a congressional directive requiring officials to periodically boost efficiency standards for furnaces, clothes dryers and 20 other common household appliances. Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller [AG press release] argued that the updated efficiency standards are critical as the nation struggles with rising energy costs, and that revised standards would multiply energy savings. Energy department spokesman Craig Stevens said the energy bill [JURIST report] signed by President Bush has incentives for the manufacture of energy-efficient products. The Sioux City Journal has more.
  
  
• A Washington court of appeals has ruled [text] that a state law prohibiting political candidates from lying about their opponents is unconstitutional. In striking down the truth-in-campaigning law [text] as a violation of the 1st amendment's protection of free speech, the state Court of Appeals Division II relied heavily on a 1998 state Supreme Court decision striking down a similar law that stated, "In this field every person must be his own watchman for truth, because the forefathers did not trust any government to separate the truth from the false for us." Attorneys for the Public Disclosure Commission [official website] argued that the law promotes credible campaigns. The case resulted from a 2002 state Senate race after which Sen. Tim Sheldon filed a complaint over his opponent's false statements about his voting record. The Seattle Times has local coverage.

[JURIST] The Antitrust Division [official website] of the US Department of Justice [official website] on Thursday sued [complaint; press release] the National Association of Realtors [group website], claiming the organization blocked competition by allowing real estate agents to withhold listings from brokers who utilized the Internet when providing customer service. Though the association announced a modified approach Thursday, the new steps failed to fend off the lawsuit. J. Bruce McDonald, deputy assistant attorney general in the Antitrust Division, said the new rules still allow a broker "to target his Web-based competitors" and deprive them of listings. The association claims the new policy, which requires an agent to post all listings online or no listings online, rather than withhold them from specific websites, is sufficient. AP has more.

[JURIST] The US Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York [official website] on Thursday made public a complaint seeking over $1 million in fines against American Airlines [corporate website]. The complaint alleges that a Federal Aviation Administration [official website] inspector observed the airline as it violated numerous federal air-safety regulations and "endangered the life and property" of passengers when it allowed a plane leaking fuel to continue to fly in November 2003. The inspector allegedly cautioned the flight crew about the problem but no record was made of the incident and no repairs were performed for weeks. A spokesman for American's parent company AMR Corporation declined to comment on the complaint. AP has more.

[JURIST] The US Senate Judiciary Committee [official website] on Thursday voted unanimously to allow high ranking members within the group to subpoena certain information from companies sued over asbestos claims. Committee leaders Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) [official website] and the ranking Democrat on the panel, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) [official website], have been asking for more data from the industry for months; data companies are reluctant to discuss the issue over fears it could make them susceptible to more lawsuits. Specter and Leahy, co-sponsors of legislation creating a $140 billion fund for asbestos victims [JURIST report], want to know how much companies would expect to contribute to the privately-financed fund. The bill was passed by the judiciary panel in May 2005 and Specter has called for a Senate vote [JURIST report] in October. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] A Texas grand jury has indicted a political action committee formed by US House Majority Leader Tom DeLay [official website] and a Texas business group on charges relating to campaign contributions for DeLay's 2002 congressional campaign, though DeLay himself was not charged. Texans for a Republican Majority was charged with illegally accepting a $100,000 political contribution, and the Texas Association of Business has been charged with unlawful political advertising, unlawful contributions to a political committee, and unlawful expenditures. The Austin American-Statesman has more.

[JURIST] A New Jersey appeals court has ruled [PDF opinion] that a law requiring all convicted criminals to register for a state DNA database in New Jersey is constitutional. The New Jersey Office of the Public Defender [official website] had challenged the law saying that the mandatory sample was an unconstitutional search, but the court ruled Wednesday that "The minimal intrusion resulting from the collection of a DNA sample is substantially outweighed by the state's need to deter and detect recidivist offenders and the public's interest in promptly identifying and accurately prosecuting the actual perpetrators of crime." The public defender's office has said that they will appeal the decision to the New Jersey Supreme Court. New Jersey began collecting DNA from sex offenders in 1994 and gradually expanded the law to include all convicted criminals. New Jersey's Attorney General [official website] has said that over 110,000 DNA samples have been collected thus far. New Jersey's Star-Ledger has more.

Previously in JURIST's Paper Chase...

• Federal appeals court upholds FL sex offender registration, DNA sample laws
• Appeals court upholds constitutionality of FBI DNA databse
• UK judge calls for national DNA database

[JURIST] A lawsuit was filed in Germany Thursday against DaimlerChrysler [corporate website] by a shareholder who claims he was "short-changed" when the company failed to promptly disclose the early resignation [BBC report] of CEO Juergen Schrempp. The shareholder is arguing that if the information was made public when the decision was first made, rather than five weeks later, he could have made a better return on his stock investment since shares went up by over 10 percent upon the announcement. His lawyers claim their client sold his DaimlerChrysler shares a mere 90 minutes before Schrempp's resignation announcement, allowing him to make only 36.50 euros (US $45.25) on the deal. This is the first lawsuit to be filed as the result of Schrempp's decision to leave the company, but several DaimlerChrysler executives are currently under investigation for insider trading. AFP has more. From Germany, Deutsche Welle has local coverage.

[JURIST] The Arbitration Appeals Court of Moscow rejected an appeal Thursday made by Russian oil company Yukos [corporate website, JURIST news archive] asking the court to freeze 76.79% of the shares of its former production unit Yuganskneftegaz [corporate website]. The appeal was submitted to dispute the sale of Yuganskneftegaz, which was auctioned off by the Russian government [JURIST report] last year to satisfy back taxes owed by Yukos. Yukos lawyers argued that the auction had been held "with numerous violations of Russian legislation and international law, including the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms [text]." RIA Novosti has more.

[JURIST] Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco [official website] has issued an executive order [PDF text] to delay all deadlines in court cases and other legal proceedings in the state from the date Hurricane Katrina [JURIST news archive] hit until at least September 25. As reasons for the suspension, Blanco cited closed courthouses and attorney offices, destroyed materials, and evacuated clients. The deadline extension was requested by two attorneys' groups and the Louisiana State Bar Association [official website]. Last week, the Securities and Exchange Commission also extended filing deadlines for businesses [JURIST report] affected by Hurricane Katrina. AP has more.

[JURIST] Internet giant Yahoo [corporate website] defended itself Thursday against claims that the company aided China in the prosecution and ten-year imprisonment of journalist Shi Tao for divulging state secrets abroad. Yahoo's Hong Kong arm allegedly helped China link to the journalist's e-mail account and computer, where they found evidence that he sent an internal Communist Party message to foreign websites. Media watchdog group Reporters Without Borders [advocacy website] has accused Yahoo of aiding China [JURIST report], but the Internet company replied that their local country sites must abide by local laws, although they declined to comment on whether they furnished the Chinese government with the information. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] An Indonesian court convicted a Muslim cleric Thursday for assisting in the 2004 bombing outside the Australian embassy in Jakarta [BBC backgrounder] that killed twelve people and wounded over 200. Heri Sigu Samboja was found guilty of two counts of terrorism and sentenced to seven years in jail for helping to assemble the bomb and conducting surveillance on the embassy before the bombing, but was cleared of helping to plan the attack. Samboja has maintained his innocence and plans to appeal, saying he was only a cook for Azahari Husin and Noordin Muhammad Top, two suspects still at large who have also been accused with planning the attack. Eleven militants have been accused [JURIST report] of participating in the 2004 bombing and Samboja's guilty verdict marks the third, after the conviction of Agus Ahmad [JURIST report] in July. AFP has more.

[JURIST] A federal judge approved a $2.1 million civil settlement Wednesday for former Qwest Communications [corporate website, JURIST news archive] executive Gregory M. Casey, who was charged in a civil lawsuit [JURIST report] for his alleged involvement in an accounting scheme that caused the company to restate billions in revenue. The settlement was reached in July [JURIST report] with the US Securities and Exchange Commission [official website], with whom Casey has said he will cooperate in further investigations. Casey was one of seven executives charged. AP has more.

[JURIST] Leaders of Canada's three opposition political parties said Thursday that the government should launch an expanded probe into situations where Canadian citizens have been investigated by federal authorities but tortured abroad, echoing a similar request made by human rights groups [JURIST report] earlier this week. The request was prompted by the cases of Maher Arar [advocacy website] and Ahmad El Maati, who both claim they were arrested, detained and tortured in Syria by interrogators receiving information from Canadian and US authorities. A public inquiry [official website] has been made into Arar's case, but leaders of the New Democratic Party (NDP) [party website], the Conservative Party [party website], and the Bloc Quebecois [party website] have called for Canada's parliament to expand the inquiry to investigate El Maati's case and other individuals who may have suffered a similar fate. Alexa McDonough [official website], former leader of the NDP, said Parliament needs to "get to the bottom of the broader issue of whether Canada is indeed not just guilty of what happened in the Maher Arar case, but actually engaged in the contracting out of torture in a number of situations." Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin [official website] has declined commenting on El Maati's case and the government has no current plans to investigate the situation. From Toronto, the Globe and Mail has local coverage.

[JURIST] A federal judge Wednesday issued a temporary restraining order stopping the Base Closure and Realignment Commission [official website] from removing fighter jets at Bradley Air National Guard base [official website] in Connecticut. Connecticut filed a lawsuit [PDF complaint; JURIST report] last month arguing that the proposed change, part of the Pentagon's base realignment plan, could not be made without the governor's approval. US District Judge Alfred Covello issued the order, saying the state would suffer hardship if the suit was not considered because once the commission's recommendations were submitted to the President, there would be no opportunity for judicial review. Thursday marks the deadline for the commission to make its final report to the President, who said he will forward it to Congress without changes. While Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell [official website] welcomed the order [statement], the federal government has appealed the ruling, saying that proposals by the commission are not issues for the courts to consider. The American Forces Press Service has background on other BRAC commission proposals. AP has more.

Previously in JURIST's Paper Chase...

• Base closure cases dismissed in Illinois, New Jersey
• States brief ~ Federal judge to hear MO base closure case
• Connecticut files suit to keep National Guard base open
• Judge rules DOD can't dissolve National Guard unit without Governor's approval
• Memo questions use of base closure law to dissolve Air National Guard units

[JURIST] Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko [official website; Wikipedia profile] sacked his cabinet Thursday and accepted the resignation of his national security chief in the face of accusations of corruption only eight months after he came into office on pledges to halt graft. Yushchenko named Yuriy Yekhanurov, a regional governor, as acting prime minister and ordered him to form a new government following the dismissals. He also ordered an investigation into the allegations of corruption that prompted four officials to resign [JURIST report] in the past two weeks. Yushchenko was elected in December 2004 [JURIST report] after a disputed election that monitors said was plagued by fraud in favor of former President Viktor Yanukovych. Yushchenko campaigned on a promise of cleaning up the Ukrainian government. BBC News has more.

[JURIST] A Georgian man who allegedly threw a grenade at President Bush while he was speaking in Tbilisi in May was indicted by a federal grand jury [US DOJ press release] Wednesday. Vladimir Arutinian [Wikipedia profile], who already has been charged and arrested in Georgia, was charged with two counts of attempting to kill Bush and possessing a firearm during a violent crime. The charges carry a possible sentence of life in prison, but US Department of Justice officials said they would wait until Arutinian was tried in Georgia before deciding whether to seek his extradition. The incident occurred May 10, while President Bush was speaking before a crowd in Freedom Square in Tbilisi. Arutinian allegedly threw the grenade within 65 feet of the president, but it failed to detonate. Arutinian also faces charges in Georgia for the murder of a Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs official during his arrest and other terror charges. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] Australian Prime Minister John Howard [official profile] on Thursday outlined tough new anti-terror laws that would give police great power to electronically track suspects and detain them for up to 48 hours. Howard offered details on the proposal at a news conference [full transcript] ahead of a meeting [JURIST report] of the Council of Australian Governments [official website] later this month to discuss methods to combat terrorism. In addition to increasing police powers, the proposed law would make it a crime to incite violence in the community or against Australian soldiers overseas, Howard said. The law would also tighten citizenship requirements in Australia [JURIST news archive], establishing a three-year period instead of two years for immigrants to gain citizenship. Civil rights groups in the country have criticized the proposals, arguing that they grant too much power to police to detain people without charge and to track people. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] The Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq [official website] officially announced Thursday that a referendum on the draft Iraqi constitution [English translation; JURIST news archive] would be held October 15 [Reuters report], but UN officials said they were still waiting for a final version of the draft to print and distribute prior to the referendum. The National Assembly failed to approve [JURIST report] the draft at its final session on Aug. 28 after Sunni lawmakers objected to several provisions [JURIST document]. Negotiations may continue [JURIST report] when the assembly opens its September session. The circumstances have created confusion as to which version of the draft will be presented to the UN for printing. UN official Nicholas Haysom said that the delay in receiving the document may affect its ability [Newsweek report] to print and distribute copies prior to the Oct. 15 vote. AFP has more.

12:19 PM ET - UN officials in Baghdad have said that the printing of Iraq's draft constitution will not begin Thursday as originally planned because the UN has not yet received authorization to print the document. Nicholas Haysom said Thursday that "we are awaiting a text certified by the National Assembly. We don't expect that to happen before Sunday." It is unclear whether the delay is due to parliament's failure to properly approve the text or if there have been modifications to the draft that was submitted to parliament last week. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] The chief lawyer for former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein [JURIST news archive] said Thursday that Hussein has not confessed to executions or directing a bloody campaign against Iraqi Kurds that reportedly killed thousands. Khalil Dulaimi said in a statement to the media that Hussein had not been implicated in the investigations conducted thus far. Earlier this week, Iraqi President Jalal Talabani [Wikipedia profile] said Hussein had confessed [JURIST report] to ordering killings of Kurds, but an anonymous source involved with the investigation later said that Saddam had defended his actions [JURIST report] as legally justified. Hussein's trial before the Iraqi Special Tribunal [official website] is set to begin Oct. 19. Defense lawyers have argued the trial will not be fair due to a lack of time to prepare and statements made by officials to the media. However, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari [Wikipedia profile] said in an interview with a British newspaper published Thursday that delay in beginning the trial has damaged the country [Independent report]. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] An opposition Egyptian presidential candidate said Thursday that he would seek a rerun of elections held Wednesday after reports from monitors that widespread fraud and violations had occurred [JURIST report]. Ayman Nour [Wikipedia profile], the best-known of nine challengers to current Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak [official profile; Wikipedia profile], said he will call for another vote in Egypt's first multi-candidate presidential election. Mubarak is widely expected to win when results are released later this week. The Presidential Election Commission would determine whether to call another vote, but it has previously rejected monitors for the election, and the Egyptian high court has said that the commission's decisions are immune [JURIST report] to legal challenge. Reuters has more. The Egyptian Gazette has local coverage in English.