[JURIST] Russian prosecutors said Saturday that they will appeal the acquittal [JURIST report] of two Chechens accused of murdering American journalist Paul Klebnikov [Wikipedia profile, Economist obituary]. Klebnikov, the editor of Forbes magazine's Russian edition, was in the process of investigating corruption in Russian business before his death in 2004 in Moscow. Prosecutor Dmitry Shokhin announced that he would appeal to the Russian Supreme Court as the lower court's trial was plagued by procedural violations.

Kazbek Dukuzov and Musa Vakhayev, accused of shooting Klebnikov, were acquitted by eight jurors Friday after pleading not guilty [JURIST report] at the trial's commencement in January. Prosecutors believe that Dukuzov and Vakhayev were working under the order [JURIST report] of Khozh-Akhmed Nukhayev [AFP profile], a Chechen separatist figure who was the subject of scrutiny of one of Klebnikov's books. AP has more.

[JURIST] Zimbabwe security officials have increased the use of torture in dealing with opponents of the government of Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe [BBC profile, JURIST news archive], according to a report released Saturday by the Zimbabwe Human Rights Forum [advocacy website]. The rights group says that 19 incidents of torture were reported during March, up from three reported in January and February, in addition to 46 reports of "unlawful arrests." In his April 18 Independence Day speech, Mugabe threatened harsher treatment [JURIST report] against any who oppose his government.

The increased abuse cases coincide with calls made by the main opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change [party website], for a step up in resistance to Mugabe's regime [MDC press release]. Another Zimbabwean resistance group, the Women of Zimbabwe Arise [advocacy website], staged a protest Thursday during which 100 women were arrested and are currently detained while awaiting trial Monday [Reuters report]. Mugabe and his home and security affairs departments could not be reached for comment on the allegations. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] State lawmakers have expressed concern about possible problems expected to accompany the implementation of the REAL ID Act [PDF text], fearing that they will not be able to comply with the law's requirements before a May 2008 deadline. The legislation, drafted after the Sept 11 attacks and designed to discourage illegal immigration, attempts to make it more difficult for terrorists to fraudulently obtain US driver's licenses and other government IDs by mandating that states require birth certificates or similar documentation and also consult national immigration databases before issuing IDs. The law is also meant to make it more difficult for potential terrorists to board aircraft or enter federal government buildings. Since the law passed Congress [JURIST report] last May, states have said that the compliance process is too large and too expensive to undertake and complete by the deadline. New York City passed a resolution asking that the law be repealed, Kentucky and Washington are currently considering passing such resolutions, and the New Hampshire House passed a bill [text] last week that would allow the state to opt out of compliance with the act entirely.

In response to the states' concerns, the National Governor's Association [official website], the National Conference of State Legislatures [official website], and the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators [official website] teamed up and released a report [PDF text] concluding that states are unprepared to implement the law [press release] and may need up to eight years to acquire the requisite money and time to successfully enact the legislation. These organizations hope the report will "bring state concerns about REAL ID to the attention of the Department of Homeland Security." The law's supporters believe that the states' claims are unfounded and that neither money, nor the time allotted for the law's enactments should be a problem. Saturday's New York Times has more.

[JURIST] Lawyers for Australian terror suspect David Hicks [JURIST news archive; advocacy website] said Saturday that Britain's Court of Appeals will not allow further appeals from the British government in Hicks' attempt to obtain UK citizenship. Hicks, currently detained at Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] and facing military commission proceedings, is seeking British citizenship in hopes that the UK government will then secure his release from Guantanamo. Hicks' mother is a British citizen, entitling Hicks to citizenship under UK law, but the UK Home Office has so far delayed a decision Hicks' application due to public policy concerns [JURIST report]. The Home Office had sought leave to appeal [ABC Australia report] the April 12 UK Court of Appeal decision [JURIST report] holding that Hicks should be granted British citizenship. The Sydney Morning Herald has more.

In related news, Brian Martin [official profile], chief justice of the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory in Australia, on Friday questioned the conditions of Hicks' four-year detention by US authorities at Guantanamo. Setting aside questions of Hicks' guilt or innocence, Martin suggested the conditions of the facility in which Hicks has been detained were "excessive" and questioned the length of his detention without being brought to trial. AAP has more.

[JURIST] Five Chinese Uighur men who had been detained at Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] despite a determination that they are not enemy combatants have been flown to Albania [press release], where government officials are reviewing their applications for asylum. According to a statement [text] from the US State Department late Friday:

the government of Albania accepted for resettlement as refugees five ethnic Uighurs, who are Chinese nationals, who had been detained by the U.S. Department of Defense at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The Government of Albania's resettlement of these individuals is an important humanitarian gesture. The United States Government appreciates the assistance of the Government of Albania in this important matter.

[JURIST] British police have said that Anjem Choudary [Wikipedia profile] and Abdul Muhid now face criminal charges stemming from their roles in the February 3 demonstration outside the Danish embassy in London against the publication of cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad [JURIST news archive] that were initially printed in a Danish newspaper in September 2005. The men were originally arrested March 15 [JURIST report] along with three other individuals suspected in the cartoon protest. Muhid will appear in court Saturday on charges of soliciting to murder, while Choudary will face charges May 11 for organizing the demonstration without contacting police officials.

Choudary served as the former head al-Muhajiroun [Wikipedia backgrounder], a controversial Islamist group banned from Britain in 2005. BBC News has more.

[JURIST] The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit [official website] has upheld a lower court's dismissal of a case challenging federal and California laws prohibiting same-sex marriage [JURIST news archive], saying that the plaintiffs must await the outcome of litigation in California state courts. In its opinion [PDF] Friday, the court ruled that:

Smelt and Hammer have presented us with issues of veriest importance, issues which touch "the foundation of the family and of society." Maynard, 125 U.S. at 211, 8 S. Ct. at 729. However, they lack standing to attack the federal law - Sections 1 and 2 of DOMA - and the district court properly abstained from deciding their attack on state law.

[JURIST] Federal prosecutors said Friday that they will retry Umer Hayat, who is accused of lying to the FBI about his son's alleged terrorism-related activities, after jury deadlock in his first trial prompted US District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. [official profile] to declare a mistrial [JURIST report]. Umer and his son, Hamid Hayat [JURIST news archive], were charged [JURIST report] last year with lying to investigators about Hamid's attendance at an al Qaeda training camp in Pakistan. Hamid was convicted [JURIST report] last month of providing material support to terrorists by attending the camp and lying to investigators.

Jury selection in the elder Hayat's new trial will begin June 5. Lawyers for the son insist that Hamid never attended a terrorist training camp and an appeal of his conviction is planned. AP has more.

[JURIST] US District Judge Reggie B. Walton has ruled that Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald [official website] will have to turn over documents essential to the I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby [defense profile; JURIST news archive] legal defense team regarding how a secret government intelligence report on Iraq was declassified. Walton's decision came in a hearing Friday concerning several Libby document requests in preparation for his trial on charges connected to the investigation [JURIST news archive] into the leak of CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity. Libby's attorney Theodore Wells maintained that President George W. Bush declassified the intelligence information and Vice President Dick Cheney authorized its dissemination before Libby allegedly leaked it to the media. Walton also ruled Friday that Fitzgerald will not have to turn over documents from government agencies such as the Central Intelligence Agency [official website], US State Department [official website], and the White House regarding the 2002 trip to Niger taken by Plame's husband, former US Ambassador Joseph Wilson. Walton said he does not want Libby's defense team "to try the legitimacy of us going to war."

Wells also indicated Friday that he will call several witnesses when Libby's trial begins in January to testify that Wilson told them his wife was a CIA operative before her name was leaked. Libby faces charges of obstruction of justice and perjury [indictment, PDF; JURIST report] to which he pleaded not guilty [JURIST report] last November. AP has more. Reuters has additional coverage.

[JURIST] Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad [official website; BBC profile] said Friday that Iran has a legal right to pursue its nuclear program and condemned a draft UN Security Council resolution currently being circulated [JURIST report], saying it does not have a legal basis. In comments during a summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization [official website] in Azerbaijan, Ahmadinejad also said that Iran was willing to act according to International Atomic Energy Agency [official website] regulations, but insisted that "the rights of both sides should be respected." Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev [official website], meanwhile, said Friday that "if international law and regulations of international organizations provides the opportunity for a country to obtain nuclear energy, then there should not be any contradiction [in] this respect."

Ahmadinejad announced last month that the country's scientists had successfully enriched uranium to make nuclear fuel [BBC report; JURIST report], ignoring a non-mandatory Security Council demand [text] that it immediately suspend its nuclear enrichment program [JURIST report]. The draft Security Council resolution being discussed would come under Chapter 7 [text] of the UN Charter [text], which can lead to sanctions or even the use of military force. RFE/RL has more. IRNA has local coverage.