[JURIST] AT&T [corporate website] and the US Department of Justice [official website] reached a consent decree [press release] Tuesday under which the telecommunications giant agreed to sell assets in seven rural US markets in exchange for DOJ approval of AT&T's acquisition of Dobson Communications Corp. [corporate website] and the withdrawal of the DOJ's lawsuit seeking to block the merger. The DOJ required the sale of AT&T assets in seven markets in five states to prevent harm to competition because Dobson also dominated those cellular markets. The acquisition of Dobson for $13 per share was announced last June, and will increase AT&T's customer base by 1.7 million subscribers. It would, however, have opened the door for AT&T to increase prices and decrease the quality of customer service in the identified markets. According to DOJ Antitrust Division Chief Thomas O. Barnett [official profile]: "The required divestitures will preserve competition for residents in rural areas in Kentucky, Oklahoma, Missouri, Pennsylvania and Texas and ensure that these consumers continue to enjoy the benefits of competition, such as lower prices, and higher quality."

Although the DOJ has tentatively approved the merger contingent upon AT&T's divestiture of the seven rural markets, the transaction still requires the approval of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) [official website]. The DOJ has said that its investigators and the FCC have cooperated in scrutinizing the AT&ampT-Dobson deal. To garner FCC approval, AT&ampT will be required to limit the amount of subsidization it receives from the Universal Service Fund [FCC backgrounder], which provides funding for increased access to telecommunications across the US, especially in low income, rural, insular, and high cost areas. In addition, the DOJ on Tuesday filed a complaint challenging the merger in the US District Court for the District of DC, which will be withdrawn if and when AT&T sells the assets, which includes divestiture of the rights to the Cellular One brand owned by Dobson. Dow Jones has more.

[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website] granted a stay of execution [order, PDF] to a convicted murderer on Mississippi's death row Tuesday, pending the Court's decision on whether to grant certiorari in the case. Earl Wesley Berry was scheduled to die by lethal injection Tuesday night; his was the third stay granted by the justices since they agreed last month in Baze v. Rees (07-5439) [docket; cert. petition] to hear a challenge to the use of lethal injections [JURIST news archive] as a form of "cruel and unusual punishment." Experts say that the stay may amount to a de facto nationwide moratorium on the death penalty. ABC News has more. AP has additional coverage.

In Baze v. Rees, the Court will consider whether the controversial three-drug mixture [DPIC backgrounder] of an anesthetic, a muscle paralyzer and a substance to stop the heart constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. Several constitutional challenges to the procedure have arisen across the country, arguing that the first drug fails to make the inmate fully unconscious, thereby making the inmate suffer excruciating pain when the heart-stopping drug is injected. Several states have already placed a moratorium on lethal injections pending the outcome of the Supreme Court case.

[JURIST] US Attorney General nominee Michael Mukasey [WH profile; JURIST news archive] wrote in a letter [PDF text] to Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday that he did not know if waterboarding [JURIST news archive] was illegal, and that it would be "irresponsible" of him to provide a legal opinion on any specific interrogation technique without an in depth analysis of relevant laws and more information about its use. In his letter, Mukasey said:

I was asked at the hearing and in your letter questions about the hypothetical use of certain coercive interrogation techniques. As described in your letter, these techniques seem over the line or, on a personal basis, repugnant to me, and would probably seem the
same to many Americans. But hypotheticals are different from real life, and in any legal opinion the actual facts and circumstances are critical. As a judge, I tried to be objective in my decision-making and to put aside even strongly held personal beliefs when assessing a legal question because legal questions must be answered based solely on the actual facts, circumstances, and legal standards presented. A legal opinion based on hypothetical facts and circumstances may be of some limited academic appeal but has scant practical effect or value.

I have said repeatedly, and reiterate here, that no one, including a President, is above the law, and that I would leave office sooner than participate in a violation of law. If confirmed, any legal opinions I offer will reflect that I appreciate the need for the United States to remain a nation of laws and to set the highest standards. I will be mindful also of our shared obligation to ensure that our Nation has the tools it needs, within the law, to protect the American people. ...

I do know, however, that "waterboarding" cannot be used by the United States military because its use by the military would be a clear violation of the Detainee Treatment Act ("DTA"). That is because "waterboarding" and certain other coercive interrogation techniques are expressly prohibited by the Army Field Manual on Intelligence Interrogation, and Congress specifically legislated in the DTA that no person in the custody or control of the Department of Defense ("DOD") or held in a DOD facility may be subject to any interrogation techniques not authorized and listed in the Manual.

In the absence of legislation expressly banning certain interrogation techniques in all circumstances, one must consider whether a particular technique complies with relevant legal standards.

[JURIST] The accumulated evidence against former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra [BBC profile] may be insufficient to compel the United Kingdom to extradite the ousted prime minister on corruption charges, according to Chief Prosecutor for Foreign Litigation Sampan Sarathana as reported in the Bangkok Post Tuesday. Saranthana travelled to London [JURIST report] earlier this month to discuss what evidence would be necessary under the bi-lateral extradition treaty between Thailand and the United Kingdom to convince UK courts to extradite Thaksin and his wife Pojamarn. After meeting with the British authorities, Sampan said he was unsure a petition to extradite Thaksin would succeed.

Thailand's Assets Examination Committee [Wikipedia backgrounder] has said previously that it intends to proceed with civil litigation against Thaksin in absentia in the case of a failed extradition bid. Thaksin and his wife have been accused of corruption [JURIST report], conflict of interest violations, and dereliction of duty for personal gain in charges stemming from a 2003 land purchase by Pojamarn from the government-directed Financial Institutions Development Fund [official website]. Thaksin was ousted in a military coup [JURIST report] last September while travelling abroad. The Bangkok Post has more.

[JURIST] A Bangladesh special tribunal sentenced former state minister Lutfozzaman Babar to 10 years in jail Tuesday for illegal possession of firearms. Babar, who served as home minister until October 2006, was found guilty of illegally possessing two pistols, a revolver and ammunition. The court officially sentenced him to a total of 17 years, but he will serve his 10-year gun possession and seven-year ammunition possession sentences concurrently. Police forces found the weapons during raids of Babar's house in May after the government detained him on suspicion of corruption at the recommendation of the country's anti-corruption commission [governing statute, PDF]. Bangladeshi citizens can keep small firearms as long as they have permits, which Babar could not produce [AP report] for police. Babar pleaded not guilty and plans to appeal the judgment [AP report], according to his lawyer.

Babar's conviction comes on the same day that his political party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, forced former party leader and prime minister Khaleda Zia [UN profile] to step down [AFP report] while she is under investigation on charges of corruption. Both recent actions are part of a continuing anti-corruption crackdown [JURIST news archive] in Bangladesh. The government declared a state of emergency [JURIST report] in January and has since detained more than 150 prominent political and business leaders. BBC News has more. ZeeNews.com has local coverage.

[JURIST] The military junta in Myanmar [JURIST news archive] has released six more dissidents held in the wake of a late summer crackdown against protesters and political opponents, the pro-democracy National League for Democracy (NLD) said Tuesday. Three members of the NLD, headed by the long-detained Aung San Suu Kyi [BBC profile; JURIST news archive], were among those released. Five of the prisoners were detained in September 27 raids on two monasteries, days after government soldiers fired shots into nonviolent crowds [JURIST reports] of protesters, resulting in at least 10 deaths. Prominent politician Win Naing, detained since September 25, was also among those freed. Earlier this week, the military government released 87 detainees [JURIST report], including over 50 NLD members.

The releases follow reports [JURIST report] last week that UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of hhuman rights in Myanmar Paulo Sergio Pinheiro [official profile] has been given permission to visit the country in November to investigate alleged human rights abuses [press release]. In August and September the Myanmar government detained an estimated 3,000 protesters [JURIST report] involved in anti-government demonstrations; dissident groups say that 200 people have been killed since the crackdown began. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website; JURIST news archive] heard oral arguments [transcript, PDF] Tuesday in United States v. Williams [LII case backgrounder; merit briefs], 06-694, to determine whether part of the federal anti-child abuse PROTECT Act of 2003 [PDF text] is unconstitutional for criminalizing speech protected by the First Amendment. Critics have challenged the law for creating criminal penalties for the advertisement or promotion of material that implies the existence of child pornography - even if there is no actual pornography. The US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit held [opinion, PDF] in April 2006 that "non-commercial, non-inciteful promotion of illegal child pornography, even if repugnant, is protected speech under the First Amendment." Solicitor General Paul Clement [official profile] defended the government's position before the Court and addressed concerns about limits on artistic expression, saying that mainstream movies depicting or referencing underage sex will not be affected by the law. AP has more.

The Court also heard oral arguments [transcript, PDF] Tuesday in Logan v. United States [Duke Law case backgrounder; merit briefs ], 06-6911, in which it will consider when repeat criminals can be treated as career criminals for sentencing purposes, when the previous convictions are for misdemeanor crimes. Under the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA) [44 USC 924 text], defendants may be subjected to longer sentences if the defendant has three prior convictions for violent felonies or serious drug offenses. Defendant James Logan argued that his three previous misdemeanor battery convictions should not count toward ACCA sentencing because he did not lose his civil rights. The US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit [official website] held that the ACCA did apply.

[JURIST] The US Department of State [official website] does not have the authority to "immunize an individual from federal criminal prosecution," State Department spokesperson Sean McCormack said at a daily press briefing [transcript] Tuesday, correcting an AP report [text; JURIST report] Monday citing anonymous sources as saying the State Department had granted "immunity" from prosecution to bodyguards working for private security firm Blackwater USA [corporate website; JURIST news archive] related to a September shooting incident [JURIST report] in Baghdad that killed 17 and prompted the Iraqi government to withdraw Blackwater's operating license [JURIST report]. McCormack described the Garrity protections that the Department had reportedly offered guards as "limited protections that would not preclude a successful criminal prosecution.' USA Today has more.

The Blackwater allegations have caused domestic outrage in Iraq and have prompted legal controversy in the US. Earlier this month, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) took over an investigation [JURIST report] of the incident from the Department of Justice [official websites]. Iraqi government investigators probing the killings have concluded that the Blackwater security detail's actions were unprovoked, and amounted to "deliberate murder" [JURIST report].

[JURIST] Canadian government lawyers plan to ask a judge to take the reportedly unprecedented step of approving the installation of closed-circuit video cameras in the home of Mahmoud Jaballah, one of the so-called Secret Trial Five [CBC backgrounder] subject to security certificates [PSC backgrounder] allowing for their detention without charge and possible deportation. Jaballah spent nearly eight years in jail without formally being charged with a crime for his alleged role in the 1998 US embassy bombings in East Africa. He is currently under house arrest. The Globe and Mail has more.

Last Monday, the Canadian government introduced [JURIST report] a new bill on security certificates in response to a February Supreme Court decision [text] that gave it one year to re-write existing law or have it voided as unconstitutional. The Supreme Court of Canada ruled [opinion text] in February that the government's use of security certificates violated the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms [text; CDCH materials] insofar as the procedure relied on evidence that detainees were not permitted to see and could not challenge. The new bill would give detainees access at private hearings to a UK-style special advocate empowered to review and challenge materials on their behalf.

[JURIST] Thailand's cabinet voted Tuesday to lift martial law [JURIST news archive] in 221 of the country's 400 districts where it is still in force, according to Deputy Secretary-General of the National Security Council Thawil Pliensri. Martial law will remain in effect in 179 districts because of security concerns regarding drug trafficking and illegal immigration. The Thai military imposed martial law nationwide after it seized power from civilian prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra [JURIST news archive] in a bloodless coup [JURIST report] in September 2006. In November the Thai cabinet approved a measure to lift the restriction in 41 of the country's 76 provinces [JURIST report], including Bangkok. Earlier this month a Thai military leader suggested martial law might remain in force indefinitely [JURIST report] in some border provinces, citing unspecified security concerns.

The cabinet's latest decision comes nearly two months in advance of the country's first elections since Thaksin's ouster, scheduled for December 23. King Bhumibol Adulyadej [official profile] must approve the measure before it can be implemented. AP has more. The Bangkok Post has local coverage.

[JURIST] Prosecutors for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) [official website] on Tuesday appealed the sentences [JURIST report] imposed on war crimes convicts Mile Mrksic and Veselin Sljivancanin [BBC profiles; ICTY case backgrounder], who were convicted in connection with the killings of over 200 Croatian prisoners of war near Vukovar [BBC backgrounder] in 1991. The tribunal found Mrksic guilty on three counts of war crimes [JURIST news archive] and sentenced him to 20 years in prison for his part in the massacre. Sljivancanin received a five-year sentence on aiding and abetting charges. The prosecutors appealed on the grounds that the sentences were grossly inadequate for the crimes committed by Mrksic and Sljivancanin considering the extreme suffering of the victims and the magnitude of the massacre. In addition, the prosecutors appealed the prisoners' acquittal on charges of crimes against humanity. Meanwhile, both Mrksic and Sljivancanin appealed the convictions, alleging that the evidence was insufficient to support the decisions against them.

ICTY Chief Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte [official profile] had expressed immediate disapproval of the verdicts for being too lenient. Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader [official website] also criticized [JURIST report] the ICTY for the judgments, saying in a letter sent last month to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon that the ICTY failed to act in a "balanced and impartial way" and calling for a review of the court's judgments. This month, Sanader addressed [press release] the UN General Assembly, calling for justice for the Vukovar massacre. In addition, Croatian President Stipe Mesic, known to be a supporter of the ICTY, said that his own confidence in the ICTY has been eroded. In December 2006, the Serbian Supreme Court ordered a retrial in the case of 14 former members of Serb militias who were originally convicted [JURIST reports] of war crimes for their roles in the Vukovar massacre. The Serbian judicial proceedings, which opened in March 2004 [JURIST report], have been seen as a test of Serbia's domestic war crimes process. AP has more.

[JURIST] The Iraqi cabinet Tuesday approved a draft law [JURIST report] that would strip foreign security contractors of immunity from Iraqi prosecution granted under Order 17 [PDF text] passed by the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) [official website]. The draft law now goes to the Iraqi parliament. According to government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh as quoted by Reuters, the legislation also requires foreign contractors to register with the government, acquire and carry weapons licenses, and submit to searches at Iraqi military security checkpoints.

The legislation was proposed following a September 16 shooting incident [JURIST report] in which 17 unarmed Iraqi civilians were killed by Blackwater USA [corporate website] contractors. The US House has passed a bill that would expand US jurisdiction over the same private contractors [JURIST report]. Another US bill [text, see s. 552, Clarification of Application of Uniform Code of Military Justice During a Time of War] passed prospectively last year in an effort to create greater legal accountability for military contractors in general does not apply to the Blackwater contractors involved in the shooting because those were employed by the US State Department. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] The Supreme Court of Pakistan [official website] heard arguments Tuesday in a challenge against the September 10 deportation of former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif [BBC profile] to Saudi Arabia. Pakistani authorities arrested Sharif on corruption and money laundering charges [JURIST report] and then expelled him shortly after he arrived in the country on a flight from London despite the Supreme Court's earlier ruling in August that Sharif had an "inalienable right to enter and remain in the country" [JURIST report] as a citizen of Pakistan. Following the deportation, Sharif's lawyers appealed [JURIST report] the deportation and Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry [official website] scheduled Tuesday's hearing to determine why Pakistani officials expelled Sharif. About 1,000 citizens gathered at the Supreme Court building to voice support for Sharif, who has remained outside Pakistan for the past seven years pursuant to a deal negotiated with then-coup leader and current president Pervez Musharraf [BBC profile].

Sharif's deportation has sparked worldwide outrage, as well as public condemnation from several retired Supreme Court of Pakistan justices and accusations [HRW statement] from advocacy group Human Rights Watch that Musharraf has flouted international law. Sharif's supporters believe Musharraf deported Sharif because he was expected to run against the president in the October 6 election that ostensibly re-elected [JURIST report] Musharraf as president. The Supreme Court is also hearing arguments [JURIST report] regarding the disputed election and will likely issue a ruling on Friday. Two of Musharraf's opponents say Musharraf may have been ineligible to run for re-election while holding positions as both president and Army chief. Meanwhile, Musharraf has announced that he will step down from his military post if the Supreme Court makes the results official. The new presidential term is set to begin on November 15. AP has more.

[JURIST] Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and the opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DJP) [party websites] Tuesday failed to reach a consensus on new anti-terror legislation necessary to extend Japan's support mission for US operations in the Indian Ocean. The LDP had urged the approval of the proposed legislation, which would limit Japan to providing refueling support to allied vessels on anti-terrorism patrols, before the expiration of the current Anti-Terrorism Special Measures Law [text] on November 1. The LDP, which previously sought a full renewal of the anti-terror law, has narrowed the scope [JURIST reports] of the legislation to obtain greater DJP support.

Japan's involvement in Operation Enduring Freedom [DOS backgrounder] by refueling and supplying water to coalition ships in the Indian Ocean has precipitated a major rift [JURIST report] between Japan's two major parties, contributing to the September resignation [BBC English translation; JURIST report] of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The DJP wishes to entirely scrap Japan's mission, saying it violates the country's pacifist constitution [text] by involving Japan in military operations. The Times Online has more.

[JURIST] The Constitutional Court of Indonesia [official website] rejected an appeal by five convicted drug smugglers against the death penalty Tuesday, ruling that capital punishment did not violate the Indonesian constitution [text]. Lawyers representing the five had argued that the death penalty violated the defendant's constitutional right to life.

The drug smugglers, including three Australians and two Indonesian nationals, were all sentenced to death for attempting to smuggle heroin from Bali to Australia in April 2005. The Constitutional Court said the Australians, as foreigners, lacked standing to challenge Indonesia laws. Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer has indicated that the Australian government will seek clemency on behalf of the Australians. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] Israeli Attorney General Menachem Mazuz [official profile] temporarily suspended a government plan to cut electricity to the Palestinian Gaza Strip [BBC backgrounder] Monday, pending legal challenges [press release; JURIST report] from several human rights groups in the Israeli Supreme Court. The human rights groups allege that the Israeli government's plan to restrict energy supples in Gaza constituted collective punishment [backgrounder] and had unsuccessfully sought an injunction against the government policy.

Israeli officials say that cutting back energy supplies was the only option the Israeli government has aside from a full-scale military operation against Hamas [BBC backgrounder], which has refused to halt indiscriminate rocket attacks against Israeli positions from Gaza. Tensions between the Islamist Hamas and the more secular Fatah [BBC backgrounder] movements heightened after Hamas defeated Fatah [JURIST report] in the 2006 Palestinian parliamentary elections, causing a major political shift in the region. Palestinian infighting has led to the establishment of two parallel Palestinian governments in the West Bank and Gaza, with Hamas dominating the latter. AP has more.

[JURIST] China has arrested 774 people in a crackdown on the production of substandard products, officials said Monday. The Chinese General Administration for Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) [official website, in Chinese] conducted 626 criminal investigations into the manufacture and sale of fake or poor quality food, medicine and agricultural products between August and October. China came under fire earlier this year after chemicals were found in toothpaste [NYT report], toys and seafood, and was generally blamed for toxins found in pet food [IHT report] that killed hundreds of dogs and cats in the US.

Nearly 200 illegal food companies were closed after more than 10,000 rule violations were found to have taken place. Chinese Vice Minister for Agriculture Gao Hongbin said a new standard of using barcodes to track food production will take effect on January 1. AP has more.

[JURIST] Eleven plaintiffs, including the R-CALF United Stockgrowers of America (R-CALF) [trade association website] have sued [press release] the US Dept. of Agriculture (USDA) to prevent a rule change that would allow Canadian cattle over 30 months old and beef products from such cattle to be imported into the country starting Nov. 19. The lawsuit, filed in the US District Court for the District of South Dakota, alleges that cows older than 30 months place US cattle at increased risk for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) [USDA backgrounder, PDF], otherwise known as "mad cow" disease [CBC backgrounder]. The USDA has said that the rule change, commonly known as the Over Thirty Month (OTM) Rule, comports with fair trade practices and that slaughterhouse regulations and inspections will protect against the spread of BSE. However, a spokesman for R-CALF alleges that

By USDA's own analysis, it is a virtual certainty that the OTM Rule will result in the importation of Canadian cattle infected with BSE, the meat from which will enter the US food supply, and that the OTM Rule also will result in the importation of billions of pounds of meat from OTM cattle slaughtered in Canada, which almost certainly include products from cattle infected with BSE. There also lies the possibility of contamination of U.S. cattle feed caused from the use of Canadian cattle products, like blood, in the manufacturing of cattle feed.

[JURIST] UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and counterterrorism Martin Scheinin [official website] called on the US in a report [DOC text] released Monday to quickly prosecute or release terror suspects detained at Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] so that the US can close the detention center. Scheinin paid an official visit to the United States in May after receiving permission from US officials [JURIST report] to examine US detention practices, although he was not allowed to interview Guantanamo detainees in private. In Monday's report, an addendum to a larger report [DOC text; press release] to the UN General assembly on human rights and counter-terrorism efforts worldwide, Scheinin also recommended:

• that legislative amendments be made to remove the denial of habeas corpus rights under the Military Commissions Act 2006 and the restrictions upon the ability of Guantánamo Bay detainees to seek full judicial review of their combatant status, with the authority of the reviewing court to order release...;
  
• that other States be willing to receive persons currently detained at Guantánamo Bay. The United States and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees should work together to establish a joint process by which detainees can be resettled in accordance with international law, including refugee law and the principle of non-refoulement...;
  
• that [military commissions] be disestablished. Wherever possible, ordinary civilian courts should be used to try terrorist suspects...;
  
• [that the United States] ensure that all its officials and agencies comply with international standards, including the article 7 of ICCPR, the Convention against Torture and, in the context of an armed conflict, common article 3 of the Geneva Conventions...;
  
• [that the US government] take transparent steps to ensure that the CIA practice of “extraordinary rendition” is discontinued and is not conducted in the future...;
  
• that all detainees are held in accordance with international human rights standards, including the requirement that all detainees be held in regularized facilities, that they be registered, that they be allowed contact with the outside world (lawyers, International Committee of the Red Cross, where applicable, and family), and that any form of detention is subject to accessible and effective court review, which entails the possibility of release...;
  
• [that the US government] restrict definitions of “international terrorism”, “domestic terrorism” and “material support to terrorist organizations” in a way that is precise and restricted to the type of conduct identified by the Security Council as conduct to be suppressed in the fight against terrorism...[and ensure] that it does not participate in the extrajudicial execution of any person, including terrorist suspects.

[JURIST] A judge in Chad has approved kidnapping charges against six French nationals after French charity Zoe's Arc [advocacy website, in French] tried to fly 103 children believed to be orphans [ZA backgrounder, in French] from the embattled Darfur region of Sudan [JURIST news archives] to France, Chadean officials said Tuesday. If found guilty the six accused could face up to 20 years in prison. Three French journalists and a seven-person Barcelona-based flight crew will also be charged with complicity in the alleged kidnapping. Zoe's Arc said it had arranged for French host families to care for the children. French authorities searched the headquarters of Zoe's Arc to see if the charity broke any French adoption laws because the charity had allegedly told some of the host families they would eventually be able to adopt the orphans.

UN children's agency UNICEF [advocacy website] is investigating whether the children, who were living as refugees in Chad [JURIST news archive], were actually orphans. Initial evidence indicates that many of the children were actually citizens of Chad, not refugees from Sudan. Chad President Idriss Deby Itno [AE profile, in French] promised to punish the suspects, calling the alleged attempted kidnapping "child trafficking" and suggesting that Zoe's Arc planned to sell the children to pedophiles or kill the children. The botched flyout occurred just before the European Union planned to deploy a 4,000 man peacekeeping force in Chad and the Central African Republic [BBC profile; JURIST news archive] to aid in the refugee crisis created by the Darfur conflict. While Deby has assured French President Nicolas Sarkozy that the scandal will not impact the incoming peacekeeping force, lawyers for Zoe's Arc have already accused Deby of making outrageous public comments about the alleged kidnapping to use as a "bargaining chip" with France in talks over the peacekeeping force. AP has more. AFP has additional coverage.