[JURIST] Leading Tuesday's international brief, Sudanese Minister for Foreign Affairs al-Samani al-Wasiylah has said that Sudan [government website] has backed off its initial refusal to allow a UN peacekeeping force into the Darfur region [JURIST news archive], but would still require consultation by UN officials before they would agree to the mandate. Al-Samani al-Wasiylah clarified that the Sudan government was not opposed to the presence of UN peacekeepers in the region, but worried that there might be "other motives" for the willingness to fund a UN force but not the current African Union peacekeeping mission already in place. UN peacekeeping missions require the assent of all parties to the conflict before they may be legally implemented. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Sudan [JURIST news archive]. The Sudan Tribune has more.

In other international legal news …

• The Supreme Court of Nepal has ordered the Nepalese government [official website] to present over seventy student activists before the court by February 13. The students, all protesters seized during anti-government rallies, have been arrested or detained as part of the Nepalese government crackdown on opposition groups critical of King Gyanendra [official profile]. The court ordered the production of the students in response to a petition filed on behalf of those incarcerated. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Nepal [JURIST news archive]. NepalNews.com has local coverage.
  
• A government report by the Zimbabwe Prison Services Commissioner-General (PSCG) for Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe [BBC profile] leaked Monday has indicated that the status of inmates in the nation's 40-plus prisons is little better than a death sentence, with critically high death rates during incarceration or just following release. PSCG Paradzai Zimondi reported that the deaths were due in part to the chronic food shortage, but also pointed to corruption among high-level prison officials as a significant factor, saying that wardens were stealing pharmaceuticals meant for inmates. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Zimbabwe [JURIST news archive]. ZimOnline.com has local coverage.
  
• Leading legal officials in Kenya [website] have drawn up the prosecutorial plan for pursuing individuals wanted as suspects and/or witnesses in the nation's two largest corruption scandals, both of which were revealed in the last few months. The Minister of Justice, the Attorney General, the Director of Public Prosecutions, and the Director of the Criminal Investigations Department met Monday and outlined a strategy for identifying, indicting, and prosecuting individuals connected with the Anglo Leasing and Goldenberg scandals. Prosecutors have vowed to indict all those responsible, regardless of rank or position. JURIST's Paper Chase has continuing coverage of Kenya [JURIST news archive]. Kenya's East African Standard has local coverage.