Iraqi officials call for delay of January election News
Iraqi officials call for delay of January election

[JURIST] Senior officials from Iraq's political parties have called for a two or three month delay of the country's planned January election, citing ongoing violence. During a one-day summit in Northern Iraq Thursday, Ibrahim al-Janabi, aide to Iraq interim prime minister Iyad Allawi, said it is not likely the security and technical issues surrounding the election can be solved quickly. It is not clear, however, who has legal authority to order a postponement given that the interim constitution says that it must be held by January 31. Two US State Department officials contacted did not have knowledge of the proposed delay. The Boston Globe has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

38 Santee Sioux hanged by US for rebellion

On December 26, 1862, 38 Santee Sioux men were hanged in a mass execution for their roles in a rebellion against US authorities in Minnesota which left hundreds dead and made refugees of some 40,000 white settlers. Government annuities promised under a treaty with the Sioux had failed to arrive on schedule and credit for purchases was not advanced in the meantime, threatening the tribe with starvation. The Santee Sioux Tribe's members were deported first to South Dakota and ultimately to Nebraska, where they remain today. Learn more about the 1862 Minnesota Sioux Rebellion.

Louis XVI put on trial during French Revolution

On December 26, 1792, Romain de Sèze, a defense attorney for deposed King Louis XVI, presented a defense of his client. The former King was on trial before a French Revolutionary court on thirty-three charges, including treason and other crimes against the state. He was convicted on January 15, 1793 executed by guillotine on the following January 21.