The UK government and the ECHR have faced increasing conflict. In March, the UK Ministry of Justice [official website] announced the creation of a commission, suggested by Cameron, which will consider the implementation of a British Bill of Rights [statement, text]. Former UK Lord Chief Justice Lord Woolf has warned that a Bill of Rights would conflict [JURIST report] with the European Convention on Human Rights, which the UK has incorporated into its law. While the government has not stated an intention to withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights, Woolf warned that continued adherence to the convention combined with the creation of Bill of Rights would create complications for judges in determining which to follow and further the existing conflict between the UK and the ECHR. Cameron suggested the creation of the commission in February after the UK House of Commons [official website] voted to reject an ECHR ruling [JURIST reports] and continue preventing prisoners from voting in British elections. The following month, the UK government took legal action to overturn [JURIST report] the ECHR ruling.

The five-year sentence Demjanjuk received in May was less than the six years sought by the prosecution [JURIST report], and he was released after being convicted. Judge Ralph Alt ordered his release because of his advanced age and because the verdict is not final. Demjanjuk's trial, which began [JURIST report] in November 2009, was marked by extensive delay. Last May, the court denied a motion to dismiss the charges [JURIST report] filed by the defense, which argued there was a lack of credible evidence. The court rejected the argument, saying they found the evidence against Demjanjuk to be strong. In October 2009, Demjanjuk was found fit to stand trial after the court rejected appeals relating to his health [JURIST reports], although the court limited hearings to no more than two 90-minute sessions per day. Demjanjuk fought a lengthy legal battle over his alleged involvement with Nazi death camps during World War II. He was deported to Germany after the US Supreme Court [official website] denied his stay of deportation [JURIST report].

Iran has been heavily criticized for its alleged human rights abuses. Jailed Iranian journalist Isa Saharkhiz [Iran Press profile] in July urged [letter, DOC, in Persian] Shaheed to investigate prison conditions in Iran [JURIST report]. In May, rights groups decried [JURIST report] Iran's persecution of lawyers. In January, the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran [official website] claimed that Iran is on an "execution binge" [JURIST report], killing one prisoner every eight hours. In January, prominent Iranian human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh was sentenced [JURIST report] to 11 years in prison. Sotoudeh was found guilty [Guardian report] of "acting against national security" and "making propaganda against the system" for which she will serve five and one years, respectively. She was the lawyer for Arash Rahmanipour, who was arrested for his role in the post-election protests on charges of moharebeh, or being an enemy of God. Rahmanipour was executed [JURIST report] in January 2010. Also in January, Iranian chief prosecutor Abbas Jafari-Dolatabadi delivered a speech at Tehran University indicating that he would prosecute opposition leaders [JURIST report] for political unrest that took place after the country's 2009 presidential election [JURIST news archive].

Gaddafi's death marks the latest milestone in the Libya conflict [JURIST feature], which began in February [JURIST report] as part of a wider protest movement that had spread throughout the Middle East and North Africa. Gaddafi and his supporters have been on the run since August, when rebel forces supported by the NTC captured the capital city of Tripoli. Earlier in the summer, the International Criminal Court (ICC) [official website] had issued an arrest warrant [JURIST report] for Gaddafi for crimes against humanity, although some commentators suggested that Gaddafi should face trial in Libya [JURIST op-ed]. The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) [official website] published a 92-page report saying that Libyan authorities committed crimes against humanity [JURIST report] under Gaddafi's direct orders during the conflict, including acts constituting murder, imprisonment, and other severe deprivations of physical liberties, torture, forced disappearances, and rape "as part of a widespread or systematic attack against a civilian population with knowledge of the attack." Gaddafi ruled Libya as a dictator for 42 years after taking power in a coup, and was known for his eccentricity and for the tight control he kept over the country.

Al-Bashir remains an extremely controversial figure in international politics for his actions during the Darfur conflict. Most recently, al-Bashir announced this month that Sudan will adopt an Islamic constitution [JURIST report]. Amnesty International (AI) [advocacy website], in a press release on the day of al-Bashir's visit, urged Malawi to arrest the Sudanese president [JURIST report] and surrender him to the ICC for prosecution. In June, AI urged Malaysia to withdraw an invitation for al-Bashir to participate in an event there and to arrest him if he travels to the country [JURIST report]. Also in June, ICC Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo issued a statement claiming that al-Bashir has continued to commit crimes against humanity [JURIST report] in Darfur. In May, the ICC urged Djibouti to arrest al-Bashir [JURIST report]. In October, the ICC requested that Kenya arrest al-Bashir [JURIST report] while he visited that year for a second time. Previously, al-Bashir had visited Kenya for the signing of the country's new constitution [JURIST report].

By taking a short position with respect to the assets that it had helped select, Citigroup profited from the poor performance of those assets, while investors in Class V III suffered losses. The CDO securities on which Citigroup bought protection had a notional value of approximately $500 million, representing half of the Class V III investment portfolio. The marketing materials Citigroup prepared and distributed to investors did not disclose Citigroup's role in selecting assets for Class V III and did not accurately disclose to investors Citigroup’s short position on those assets. ... By engaging in the conduct described herein, [CGMI] violated Sections 17(a)(2) and (3) of the Securities Act of 1933 ... by negligently misrepresenting key deal terms.

Citigroup's settlement is the third between the SEC and a major bank accused of marketing a CDO without disclosing a short position or allowing investors to take one. In June JPMorgan Chase & Co [corporate website] settled similar fraud charges [JURIST report] for $153.6 million. The settlement included a $133 million fine and $20.6 million representing fraudulent profits and interest. In July 2010, Goldman Sachs [corporate website; JURIST news archive] agreed to a $550 million settlement with the SEC to resolve charges [JURIST report] that the firm marketed a subprime mortgage product and made misleading statements and omissions to investors in early 2007. Of the $550 million settlement, $300 million was to be paid to the US Treasury and $250 million disgorged to harmed investors. The penalty was the largest against a financial company in SEC history. Additionally, in December 2010 Bank of America (BOA) [corporate website] settled with the SEC [JURIST report] for $137 million, although the case did not involve investor fraud charges. There BOA was charged with using anti-competitive transactions with 20 state municipalities, putting at risk the tax-exempt status of municipal securities by establishing fraudulent fair market values using "improper bidding practices" between 1998 and 2002.