International Legal News - 12 January 2026
- Jan 12
- 3 min read
The following media round up on international and foreign policy issues from around the world for the period of 05 January to 09 January 2026.
Guernica 37 will provide weekly media updates from the International Criminal Court, European Court of Human Rights, United Nations, European Union and other sources. Should you wish to contribute or submit a media summary, opinion piece or blog, please send to Ned Vucijak at nenadv@guernica37.com for consideration.
9 January 2026
Human Rights: NGO criticises unjustified killing by ICE officers in US
The human rights NGO, Human Rights Watch, (“HRW”) has criticised the killing of a woman in Minneapolis by a federal immigration officer on 7 January 2026, after the incident was recorded and posted online.
“Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers confronted the 37-year-old US citizen, Renee Nicole Good, on a residential street in south Minneapolis, which a witness said Good was blocking with her car. As Good attempted to drive away from the officers, one shot her three times at close range”
Following an analysis of videos of the incident, HRW has stated and offered the view that when the shots were fired, the officer could not have reasonably feared death or serious injury.
For more on this story, see here.
8 January 2026
International Law: ICJ begins hearings on Rohingya genocide
The International Court of Justice (“ICJ”) will begin hearings on the merits of the Rohingya genocide case on the 12 January – serving as a new chapter in the process of realising accountability for alleged atrocities recorded in Myanmar since 2016.
The request for the hearing emerged in 2019 after the Gambia requested the Court to start proceedings against Myanmar pursuant to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
For more on this story, see here.
7 January 2026
Rule of Law: NGO reports brutal crackdown on Iranian protests
The human rights NGO, Human Rights Watch, (“HRW”) has reported that the Iranian authorities have intensified their crackdown on anti-government protests that have erupted in Iran.
It is alleged that the government has used lethal force and deployed military-grade weapons as well as metal pellets fired from shotguns among other items to quell the unrest.
For more on this story, see here.
6 January 2026
Blog Corner: “Offsetting Inter-State Debt in International Law”
The recent war of aggression in the Ukraine has raised questions about the immobilisation of assets belonging to the Russian Central Bank across several jurisdictions. Recent proposals have considered to what extent those assets could be repurposed to fund Ukraine’s military defence.
In a post for EJIL: Talk!, Dr Federica Paddeu and Professor Michael Waibel, look at the wider issues and consider whether in international law, it is possible to allow for the unilateral set-off of inter-state debt in domestic jurisdictions.
To read this article, see here.
5 January 2026
International Arbitration: “Recognizing Foreign Arbitral Awards in Germany: Navigating the Requirement for Security for Costs”
A helpful guide by Maria Clara von Rundstedt and Franziska Reese of Baker McKenzie, looks at the particulars of having foreign arbitral awards recognised in Germany.
Their analysis examines a case issued by the German Courts last year that illustrates how Section 110 of the German Code of Civil Procedure, which aims to protect defendants from unrecoverable litigation costs works in practice, and how international treaties can take precedence over domestic law.
To read this article, see here.