[JURIST] Two men who allege that the CIA detained and tortured them in foreign prisons Wednesday joined [ACLU press release] a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) [advocacy website] against San Jose-based Boeing subsidiary Jeppesen Dataplan [corporate websites]. Iraqi citizen Bisher al-Rawi alleges that in 2002 he was detained while on a business trip in Gambia and flown to Afghanistan, where he was interrogated and tortured in a US-run prison. Yemeni citizen Mohamed Farag Ahmad Bashmilah said that he was arrested in Jordan in 2003 while visiting his mother and then flown to Afghanistan by the CIA. Bashmilah said he was interrogated and tortured for six months at Bagram Air Base [GlobalSecurity backgrounder].

In May, the ACLU filed the lawsuit [press release; JURIST report] in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, alleging that Jeppesen Dataplan knowingly supported direct flights to secret CIA prisons, facilitating the torture and mistreatment of US detainees. The ACLU alleges that Jeppesen played a key role in the extraordinary rendition [JURIST news archive] flights by providing a number of vital services including itinerary, route, weather, and fuel planning, as well as obtaining over-flight and landing permits from foreign governments. The ACLU was originally representing three men who were subjected to the CIA flights: Binyam Muhammad, currently being detained at Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive], Abou Elkassim Britel, currently in a Moroccan prison, and Ahmed Agiza, currently in an Egyptian prison. Al-Rawi was held at Guantanamo Bay for nearly five years before being released [JURIST report] to the United Kingdom, where he holds residency. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] A military jury Wednesday found a US Marine corporal guilty [press release] of conspiracy to murder, larceny and housebreaking for his role in the April 2006 kidnapping and murder of an Iraqi civilian in Hamdania [USMC timeline; JURIST news archive]. Cpl. Marshall Magincalda was also found not guilty of premeditated murder, kidnapping and making a false official statement. A jury continued to deliberate Wednesday in the case of another accused Marine, Sgt. Lawrence G. Hutchins III, who faces several charges [JURIST report], including murder.

Five defendants have pleaded guilty [JURIST report] in the death of Hashim Ibrahim Awad [Wikipedia profile], who was removed from his residence and killed, then arranged with a shovel and firearm to appear as if he were planting an improvised explosive device. In February, Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Melson J. Bacos testified [JURIST report] that Magincalda was among the Marines who entered Awad's house and dragged him out. Magincalda's sentencing hearing is scheduled to begin Thursday morning. AP has more.

[JURIST] A French court of appeals Wednesday released two men accused of involvement in the 1994 Rwanda genocide [BBC backgrounder], finding that the warrants issued for their arrest by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) [official website] could not be executed. Catholic priest Wenceslas Munyeshyaka and former civil servant Laurent Bucyibaruta [TrialWatch profiles] were arrested [JURIST report] by French authorities last month. Rwanda's representative at the ICTR, Aloys Mutabingwa, blasted the decision to free the suspects as politically motivated, but Rwandan justice minister Tharcisse Karugarama declined to comment until he learned more about the situation.

Munyeshyaka is accused [ICTR indictment, PDF] of repeatedly participating in the selection of Tutsi that were to be killed, as well as serving as an informant against Hutus who aided Tutsis. Munyeshyaka is also believed have participated in the rape of several women. Both suspects were arrested on international warrants issued by the ICTR in June. AFP has more.

[JURIST] The US Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee [official website] approved a bill Wednesday to allow the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) [official website] to regulate tobacco. The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act [S 625 materials], introduced by Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and approved 13-8 by the committee, would require the FDA to limit tobacco advertising, enforce warning labels, and determine which tobacco products could be marketed as "reduced risk."

Last week, former FDA Commissioner Dr. Mark McClellan said that the FDA does not have the resources [JURIST report] to handle the responsibility of tobacco regulation. The FDA first began to regulate the tobacco industry in 1996, but the US Supreme Court ruled in FDA v. Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp. [text] that Congress had not provided the FDA with authority to regulate tobacco products. AP has more.

[JURIST] Military doctors participating in the force-feeding of hunger-striking detainees at Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] are violating medical ethics, according to commentary [text] published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) [journal website]. The three authors - Sondra S. Crosby, MD, Caroline M. Apovian, MD, Michael A. Grodin, MD - wrote that military doctors should not force treatment on detainees who have refused to voluntarily provide an informed consent, and said they were "disturbed" after conducting a review of detainee medical records and finding no evidence that the detainees had received psychiatric evaluations or been informed about the health consequences of hunger-striking or tube force-feeding. The World Medical Association (WMA) [official website] issued a revised declaration [text] last year saying:

Forcible feeding is never ethically acceptable. Even if intended to benefit, feeding accompanied by threats, coercion, force or use of physical restraints is a form of inhuman and degrading treatment. Equally unacceptable is the forced feeding of some detainees in order to intimidate or coerce other hunger strikers to stop fasting.

ALSO ON JURIST  Op-ed: Guantanamo and Medical Ethics | Comment: More Guantanamo hunger strikes: the silence is deafening

[JURIST] Getty Museum [official website] Director Dr. Michael Brand and the Italian Minister of Cultural Heritage and Activities Francesco Rutelli [official profile, in Italian] Wednesday announced an agreement to return 40 allegedly looted Italian artifacts [press release; list of objects, PDF] to Italy over the next several months. They also announced that Italy and the Getty Museum have agreed to a "broad cultural collaboration that will include loans of significant art works, joint exhibitions, research, and conservation projects."

Last November, Rutelli demanded that the Getty return all allegedly looted Italian antiquities [JURIST report] rather than just the 26 pieces the Getty had pledged to return [Getty press release]. The Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities [official website] had threatened to suspend all Italian collaboration with the Getty if an agreement was not reached by August. The Getty has denied knowingly purchasing looted artifacts. Italian authorities have insisted that, pursuant to a 1939 Italian law, all archaeological artifacts excavated in Italy belongs to the Italian state, and that many items recovered in international waters were nevertheless exported illegally from Italy. AP has more

[JURIST] US Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) [official websites] said Wednesday that Democrats are willing to expand government surveillance over foreign communications under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) [text; JURIST news archive], but disagree with the White House over spending and "the involvement of the attorney general." The proposal was made last week by Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell [official profile], who said that he hoped to make changes soon to add more flexibility to FISA. The Democrats indicated that they understand the importance of the changes, but a $23 billion budget dispute may stall negotiations concerning the amendments.

Last week, President George W. Bush said in his weekly radio address [transcript; recorded audio] that he wants to modernize FISA [JURIST report] to meet threats from terrorists who can now use cell phones and the Internet to communicate. The current proposal is not as broad as the amendments offered in April [JURIST report], which would have greatly changed the law. AP has more.

[JURIST] Former Khmer Rouge prison chief Kaing Khek Iev [TrialWatch profile], also known as Duch, is willing to testify against other members of the Khmer Rouge, according to information released Wednesday by the tribunal that indicted [JURIST report] Duch earlier in the week. Included in Duch's detention order [PDF text] is Duch's admission that he oversaw the S-21 prison and his statement that he is willing to talk about the crimes that led to the Khmer Rouge genocide [JURIST news archive] of 1.7 million Cambodians. The Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) [official website] also said Wednesday that Kar Savuth and Francois Roux had been selected by Duch to serve as his trial lawyers [press release, PDF].

Duch, one of five former Khmer Rouge leaders under investigation by the court, was arrested in 1999 on genocide charges and was subsequently charged by a military court with crimes against humanity in 2002 and war crimes [JURIST report] in March in an effort to keep Duch in custody while the ECCC started operations. Earlier this month, Nuon Chea [BBC profile], former deputy general of the Cambodian Communist Party and the most senior surviving member of the Khmer Rouge, said in an AP interview [text] that he expects to appear before the ECCC, but denied any responsibility for the genocide. The ECCC was established by a 2001 law [text as amended 2005, PDF] to investigate and try those responsible for the Cambodian genocide that occurred between 1975-1979. The genocide resulted in the deaths of approximately one-third of the Cambodian population. To date, no top Khmer Rouge officials have faced trial, and the charges against Duch are first charges brought by the tribunal. AP has more.

[JURIST] Australian Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty [official profile] Wednesday indicated that the Australian Federal Police (AFP) investigation of Dr. Mohammad Haneef [JURIST news archive] was "far from complete," adding that the AFP may still submit a new brief of evidence against Haneef to prosecutors. Keelty's comments followed the Tuesday release of "secret information" [press release; Solicitor-General's opinion, PDF] by Immigration and Citizenship Minister Kevin Andrews [official website], who said the AFP still considers Haneef a suspect in the attempted UK car bomb attacks [JURIST report] in June. The newly released information provided few additional insights to Andrews' much criticized decision to revoke Haneef's work visa and place him under "immigration detention" [JURIST report], but instead reiterated that Haneef left a subscriber identity module (SIM) [Wikipedia backgrounder] with his second cousin, who is one of the alleged bombers.

Haneef, who has not been implicated by UK authorities in the attacks, was detained as a terrorist suspect for 25 days for allegedly providing reckless material support [JURIST report]. Last Friday, prosecutors dropped the terror charge [JURIST report] against Haneef due to insufficient evidence. Haneef has since traveled to Bangalore, India to rejoin his wife and newborn child after the Australian government lifted Haneef's travel ban [JURIST report]. Australian Prime Minister John Howard has refused to apologize [JURIST report] to Haneef, who is currently appealing the revocation of his work visa at the Federal Court of Australia [official website]. Haneef's next hearing is scheduled for August 8. PTI has more.

[JURIST] The Iraqi Accordance Front [BBC backgrounder], the largest Sunni parliamentary bloc, announced Wednesday that it was leaving the government and that the party's six Cabinet members would be turning in their resignations. The move is said to be a response to the failure of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki [BBC profile] to respond to demands made by the party last week, including pardons for uncharged security detainees, the participation of all government-represented groups in security-related issues, and a commitment to human rights. The Front holds 44 of the 275 total seats in the Iraqi Parliament and was an important partner in al-Maliki's National Reconciliation Plan [text].

In July, the Accordance Front said that it was suspending participation [JURIST report] in al-Maliki's coalition government pending his answer to the specific demands. The demands came just a week after Sunni members of the Iraqi Council of Representatives ended a lengthy boycott of parliamentary sessions [JURIST report] after agreeing to a secret deal with Shi'a political parties to reinstate the ousted Sunni lawmaker Mahmoud al-Mashhadani [Wikipedia profile] as speaker of the Council of Representatives. AP has more.

[JURIST] Lawyers representing Jose Padilla [JURIST news archive] indicated Tuesday that they are not expecting to present a defense case, telling presiding US District Judge Marcia Cooke [official profile] that the defense will not call any witnesses. Jurors have been hearing the testimony from six witnesses called by lawyers representing Padilla's co-defendants, Adham Amin Hassoun and Kifah Wael Jayyousi [GlobalSecurity profiles] since federal prosecutors rested their case [JURIST report] on July 13. Defense lawyers representing the co-defendants are expected to finish presenting their case near the end of the week, and the prosecution will likely present a rebuttal early next week. The jury, which was seated [JURIST report] in May, may begin deliberations as early as late next week.

Padilla, Hassoun, and Jayyousi are accused [JURIST report] of being a part of an Islamic fundamentalist terrorist support network and conspiring to murder US nationals. Padilla, a US citizen, was arrested in 2002 at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport and subsequently detained as an "enemy combatant" [JURIST news archive] at a Navy military brig in Charleston, South Carolina. Initially accused of planning to set off a "dirty bomb" in the United States, Padilla went from enemy combatant to criminal defendant when he was finally charged with other offenses in November 2005. Padilla was transferred to civilian custody [JURIST report] in January 2006 and has pleaded not guilty [JURIST report] to the charges. AP has more.

[JURIST] Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe [official website, in Japanese] said Tuesday that the recently passed US House of Representatives resolution [HR 121 materials; JURIST report] calling for a formal apology from Japan for forcing Asian women to become "comfort women" [Amnesty backgrounder; JURIST news archive] during World War II is "regrettable." Abe said that Japan has already taken steps to atone for what happened during the war, as leaders have apologized for it repeatedly since 1990, when the country recognized the occurrence of sex slavery. Japan formally apologized in the 1993 Kono Statement [text] in which the Japanese government offered its "sincere apologies and remorse" to the victims after decades of denying official involvement.

The resolution came as a reaction to Abe's March statements denying allegations of forced sexual slavery [JURIST report], saying instead that the women were professional prostitutes paid for their services. Abe's statements echoed the sentiments of Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso, who made similar remarks [JURIST report] in February. Abe later issued a guarded apology [JURIST report], although he stopped short of explicitly acknowledging the role played by the Japanese military and government in facilitating the brothels. Last month, a Japanese group consisting of 13 right-wing parliamentarians and more than 200 local politicians, nationalist intellectuals and historians called on the US House of Representatives to retract the resolution [JURIST report], claiming that the resolution is based upon "wrong information" and contradicts "historical fact." AP has more.

[JURIST] Two federal district judges separately rejected a bid by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger [official profile] to appeal rulings ordering the federal supervision [JURIST report] of California's overcrowded prison system [JURIST news archive] Tuesday, ruling that while California may appeal specific orders made by a special three-judge panel, the state cannot appeal the original rulings establishing the panel. Schwarzenegger had argued that the panel was established too soon, before the state's $7.7 billion prison expansion program [JURIST report] had time to work. Judge Thelton E. Henderson of the Northern District of California and Judge Lawrence K. Karlton of the Eastern District of California rejected California's assertion that the panel's supervision poses a potential public danger because it may order the release of prisoners from overpopulated facilities. A spokesperson for Schwarzenegger's office has indicated that California will seek a stay of the panel's supervision during California's appeal to the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit [official website].

California's construction program will create 53,000 new prison and jail beds over the next five years. The threat of federal oversight has also induced California to introduce a plan to release prisoners convicted of nonviolent crimes [JURIST reports]. The San Francisco Chronicle has more.

[JURIST] Nine defendants, including three former Vietnamese government officials, accused of involvement in organized gambling and bribery went on trial Wednesday before the Hanoi People's Court. Bui Tien Dung, a former project management head in the Ministry of Transportation [official website], allegedly placed bets totaling $760,000 on European soccer matches and subsequently attempted to cover up the alleged wrongdoing by paying a bribe of $68,000. If convicted of bribery, Dung could face the death penalty. Other defendants face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for gambling, which is strictly illegal in Vietnam. The trial is expected to last three days.

Dung headed the Project Manage Unit (PMU) 18, which is responsible for the construction of roads and bridges and a is recipient of aid from the World Bank [official website] and other countries. The World Bank said in May that it found no evidence of fraud or corruption [press release] after conducting an independent review of PMU 18, although it noted shortcomings in transparency and accounting structures. The gambling-bribery scandal has resulted in the resignation [VOA report] of Transportation Minister Dao Hinh Binh and the arrest of his deputy Nguyen Viet Tien. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] A Saudi Arabian court dismissed charges against three members of the country's religious police force and a police officer implicated in the death of detainee Ahmed al-Bulaiwi, a relative of the deceased said Tuesday. The religious police, also known as the mutaween [official website, in Arabic; Wikipedia backgrounder], are employed by the Committee for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice [Wikipedia backgrounder] to enforce Saudi Arabia's strict interpretation of Islam. Members of the religious police force arrested al-Bulaiwi in June for being alone with a woman who was not his relative. Al-Bulaiwi, who works as a driver, was apparently driving the woman home at the request of her family because Saudi law prohibits women from driving. Relatives of al-Bulaiwi expressed outrage at the decision, calling it "unacceptable." AP has more.

The Saudi mutaween is infamous for its draconian enforcement of Islamic law. In 2002, members of the religious police barred firefighters from rescuing 15 school girls [BBC report] and blocked the girls from escaping a burning school because the girls were not properly covered. The high-profile incident prompted the Saudi interior minister to issue a rare public rebuke of the religious police [BBC report] for not showing "leniency" during the fire.

[JURIST] Nuradin Abdi, a Somali national accused of planning terror attacks on shopping malls in the US, pleaded guilty [press release] to conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists Tuesday. Under the plea agreement [PDF text; statement of facts, PDF] Abdi will serve 10 years in prison and pay a fine of $100,000. According to the DOJ press release, Abdi traveled abroad in 1999 and 2000 to train himself for "violent jihad," and upon returning to the US:

he proposed a plot to bomb a shopping mall. Abdi was later provided with compact discs containing instructions on how to make explosives. In Dec. 2002, [Iyman] Faris described to Abdi a potential plot to launch missile attacks against various landmarks in Washington, D.C.

Shortly after these discussions, Faris was taken into custody and began making statements to the FBI. Federal agents arrested Abdi on Nov. 28, 2003. Abdi subsequently agreed to be interviewed by FBI agents and admitted conspiring with Faris, [Christopher] Paul and others to provide material support to foreign terrorists. These admissions by Abdi have been corroborated in a variety of ways, including bank records, travel records, invoices, and items seized in search warrants.

[JURIST] EU Commissioner for Justice, Freedom and Security Franco Frattini [official profile] is moving forward with plans to create a single European Union prosecutor and strengthen the the EU's prosecutorial body Eurojust [official website], according to an interview with EUobserver published Wednesday. Frattini indicated that once EU leaders agree to the Reform Treaty [EU materials; JURIST news archive], the commission will proceed with proposals to establish regular channels for information exchange from member states to Eurojust, and also move to seek concessions from member states for a "more effective decision-making process" in the area of justice and home affairs. Frattini said that while the EU is unlikely to have a common criminal code, he hopes that there will be greater "harmonization" in the definition of certain criminal activities that often encompass multiple borders.

The UK government has insisted on four-non-negotiable "red lines" [JURIST report], objecting to any incorporation of the European Charter of Fundamental Rights [European Parliament materials] or relinquishing control of the UK's common law and judicial and police system. Frattini said that he hopes that the UK government will, on its own accord, pass legislation incorporating the proposed reforms. EUobserver has more.

[JURIST] Amnesty International [advocacy website] Tuesday urged the Mexican government to initiate a probe into alleged abuses [press release; report] by government authorities during the 2006 uprising in the Mexican state of Oaxaca [BBC backgrounder], saying that "ensuring that impunity for human rights violation is not allowed to prevail" will help to deter future abuses and be an opportunity for Mexican President Felipe Calderon [official website, in Spanish] to demonstrate that he is "committed to protecting, ensuring and fulfilling human rights." Oaxaca Governor Ulises Ruiz Ortiz rejected the report as one-sided, saying that he believed its authors were advisers for the Popular Assembly of the Peoples of Oaxaca [official website], a group of leftist labor and social organizations who banded together to demand the resignation of the Oaxacan government.

In May, the National Human Rights Commission (CNDH) [official website] issued a report criticizing the federal government's response [JURIST report] to the Oaxaca uprising, saying that the government's intervention was "unjustifiably delayed for more than a month and half," which allowed protesters to occupy the state capital for five months after state authorities overwhelmed. The CNDH received 1,352 separate human rights complaints and found hundreds to be credible, including complaints that police officers tortured at least 13 protesters while they were being transported to detention facilities. Last October, a UN human rights expert expressed concerns over rights violations in Oaxaca [JURIST report]. In December 2006, Mexican police arrested the Oaxaca uprising leader [JURIST report] on five charges, including kidnapping and robbery. AP has more.

[JURIST] Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf [official website] said publicly Tuesday that he has accepted the judgment of the judiciary to reinstate Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry [official website; JURIST news archive], adding that the "four pillars" of democratic society consisting of the judiciary, legislature, executive, and media must be able to "conduct their roles without fear or favor." In July, the Supreme Court of Pakistan [official website] reinstated Chaudhry and dismissed all charges of misconduct [order; JURIST report]. Shortly after the court's decision, Chaudhry resumed his duties [JURIST report] at the high court.

Many Pakistani lawyers and opposition leaders have alleged that Musharraf's March 9 suspension [JURIST report] of Chaudhry was an indirect bid to forestall any legal challenges if Musharraf seeks to extend his eight-year rule by another five years later this year. AP has more. APP has local coverage.

[JURIST] An Egyptian court rejected a petition from jailed opposition leader Ayman Nour [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] for early release on medical grounds Tuesday, saying that evidence submitted by Nour failed to prove that his medical condition was life threatening or that his heart condition will be adversely affected by prison. Nour, who suffers from heart disease and diabetes, was convicted [JURIST report] in 2005 for allegedly forging signatures on documents registering his Al-Ghad Party [party website] for presidential elections [JURIST news archive], and was sentenced to five years in jail.

In May, an Egyptian criminal court rejected [JURIST report] a plea by a public prosecutor for Nour's early release. Nour has said the charges were politically motivated and has accused the Egyptian police of abuse [Reuters report]. The United States has indicated that it is "deeply troubled by the conviction" and has urged Egypt to release Nour [press release]. AP has more.