Sunni clerics complained of more rights abuses by Iraq's mostly-Shiite security forces in Iraq on Wednesday, further complicating efforts to encourage Sunni participation in Iraq's political process. The bodies of 11 Sunni men – including one cleric – were found on Wednesday after they were rounded up police and allegedly tortured, just three days after [...]

Russia has demanded the extradition from the United States of Leonid Nevzlin , a former Yukos executive and majority shareholder accused of ordering murders. Nevzlin now lives in exile in Israel, but was in the US Wednesday to address the Helsinki Commission to discuss how the scandal and eventual conviction of former Yukos CEO Mikhail [...]

A military investigator appearing Wednesday before the Senate Armed Services Committee told lawmakers that certain terrorist suspects at Guantanamo Bay were degraded and abused by interrogators, but not tortured. Air Force Lt. Gen. Randall Schmidt , charged with investigating abuse allegations made by FBI agents at Guantanamo, testified and presented a report to the committee [...]

The US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments Wednesday in a challenge to Montana District Court Judge Richard Cebull's March ruling barring the resumed importation of Canadian cattle to the US. US attorney Mark Stern represented the US Department of Agriculture, and urged the court to lift the temporary injunction that bars the [...]

Following up on a story previously reported in JURIST’s Paper Chase, the House Select Committee on Intelligence Wednesday approved several measures porposed by Democrats during a markup session that would limit on governmental power under the Patriot Act . The measures include a provision requiring federal agents to provide greater detail to judges before getting [...]

French Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy announced Wednesday that his country will retake full control of its borders within the EU. Sarkozy cited security concerns created after the London bombings last week for the decision to activate the "safety clause" of the 1985 Schengen Treaty . Under the treaty, France and many other EU member nations [...]

Leading Wednesday's corporations and securities news, shareholders of Sprint and Nextel approved Sprint's $36 billion bid to purchase Nextel. In a joint press release, the companies announced that 97 percent of voters approved of the merger. The deal still has several obstacles until it gains final approval, including resolving lawsuits from several affiliates of both [...]

Leading Wednesday's states brief, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled today that citizens cannot sue Dow Chemical Company for the costs of testing for future dioxin-related health problems. The court stated that medical monitoring is not a legal claim in Michigan and the issue is better suited for the Legislature. Over 170 residents along the Tittabawassee [...]

Prosecutors announced Wednesday that they will not appeal a judge's decision to drop perjury charges against former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy , who was previously acquitted of fraud charges . Immediately after the acquittal, government attorneys said they planned to get the perjury charges reinstated. Even with the criminal issues over, Scrushy still faces civil [...]

Despite calls for urgent action by advocacy groups and a UN panel recommendation, UN officials indicated Wednesday that the UN Security Council was moving slowly on the establishment of a tribunal in investigate the East Timor violence of 1999 , waiting to publish the full UN panel report proposing the establishment of a tribunal until [...]