Israel, Hezbollah not investigating 2006 Lebanon war violations: Amnesty News
Israel, Hezbollah not investigating 2006 Lebanon war violations: Amnesty

[JURIST] Amnesty International [advocacy website] Thursday condemned Israel and Hezbollah for failing to investigate alleged war crimes and humanitarian law violations [press release] during the summer 2006 Lebanon conflict [JURIST news archive], calling upon the United Nations to establish a "comprehensive, impartial, and independent inquiry" to investigate the alleged violations and setup provisions to compensate the victims. Amnesty criticized Hezbollah for indiscriminately firing rockets into northern Israel, while also criticizing the Israeli use of cluster munitions [FAS backgrounder] in southern Lebanon. It chided the UN Security Council for its inaction and "partisan politics and selectivity," and faulted the UN Human Rights Council [official website] for conducting a one-sided inquiry focusing only on alleged violations by Israel.

Last November, the UN rights body characterized the Israeli use of force in Lebanon as "excessive, indiscriminate, and disproportionate" [JURIST report] in "flagrant violation" of international law. The panel later recommended that Israel be made to compensate Lebanon for the damages [JURIST report] inflicted during the 33-day conflict. In January, the White House reported that Israel's use of US-made cluster munitions may have violated agreements [JURIST report] with the United States requiring that the weapons be used against clearly defined military targets or only for self-defense. AP has more

THIS DAY @ LAW

Indian National Congress founded

The Indian National Congress (INC) was founded on December 28, 1885 in Bombay (now Mumbai), India. In subsequent decades, the so-called Congress Party would advocate for Indian independence from the UK, which was eventually achieved in 1947. The first Prime Minister of independent India, Jawaharlal Nehru, was elected as a member of the INC. Learn more about the history and founding of the Indian National Congress.

Congress recognized Pledge of Allegiance

On December 28, 1945, Congress officially recognized the Pledge of Allegiance and encouraged its recitation in schools. The Pledge was supposedly written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus Day. The words “under God” were added by Congress in 1954. The revised version of the Pledge was the subject of litigation before the United States Supreme Court originally brought by Michael Newdow, a parent who unsuccessfully objected to his daughter's school district policy requiring daily recitation of the Pledge. The court ruled that Newdow had no standing.

Nepal ends monarchy, establishes republic

On December 28, 2007, the Kingdom of Nepal's interim parliament ended the country's monarchy and established the Republic of Nepal. Free elections were held on April 10 of the following year to elect a Constituent Assembly.

Learn more about the rise of democracy in Nepal.