[JURIST] Leading Monday's international brief, a Sudanese government official has denied reports that Sudan would accept UN peacekeepers [CBC report] in the Darfur region [JURIST news archive] as inaccurate and unfounded. Sudan [government website] has continually rejected [JURIST report] all attempts to deploy UN peacekeepers, saying that they feared Western imperialism and would allow only African Union peacekeepers. Sudanese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Jamal Muhammad Ibrahim told reporters that Sudan would consider allowing UN assistance after the peace accords tentatively agreed to on Friday were finalized, but that the final decision would be Sudan's and that the use of UN peacekeepers could not "be imposed on Sudan." The AU has recommended that the UN take over [JURIST report] its massively underfunded peacekeeping operation starting at the end of September, but current estimates put UN deployment at six months from receipt of permission from the Sudanese government. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Sudan [JURIST news archive]. The Sudan Tribune has local coverage.

In other international legal news …

• Nearly fifty protesters were arrested or detained in Egypt this weekend as they conducted rallies against the ongoing disciplinary reviews [JURIST report] of two judges known to favor political reform. The arrests and detentions were permitted under the recently extended emergency laws [JURIST report] that permit Egyptian authorities to arrest any individual engaging in protests that may "pose a threat to national security." The judges have been called before Egypt's Supreme Court to answer for their allegations that the national elections last year in Egypt were invalid due to large amounts of fraud and government interference. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Egypt [JURIST news archive]. AP has more.
  
• Kenyan Solicitor-General Wanjuki Muchemi [official profile] has announced that the Kenyan legal system will be implementing a program of mandatory alternative dispute resolution (ADR) [LII backgrounder] procedures to attempt to lighten the load on the severely overburdened judiciary. Instead of simply offering parties the opportunity to use ADR facilities, the courts will identify cases that would best benefit from ADR and will mandate those cases to the relevant ADR program. Muchemi said that the goal was to free up judges to deal with the growing number of criminal justice cases that have been delayed due to lack of presiding judges. Training courses for lawyers and judges have already begun. No date has been given for the implementation of the mandatory assignment of cases to ADR. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Kenya [JURIST news archive]. Kenya's East African Standard has local coverage.
  
• Elections for Italy's new president will begin this week, but a quick selection is unlikely, as the two major political parties in Italy have failed to agree on a candidate. The election of the new president is required before newly elected Prime Minister Romano Prodi [BBC profile] may legally form his new government. The position of president in Italy's government is largely ceremonial, but the election requires three ballots to be won by two-thirds of the members of parliament, which make a quick selection difficult. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Italy [JURIST news archive]. BBC News has more.