International Legal News - 19 January 2026
- Ned Vucijak
- 5 hours ago
- 3 min read
The following media round up on international and foreign policy issues from around the world for the period of 12 January to 16 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.
16 January 2026
Arbitration: UK Court of Appeal upholds anti-suit relief in Russian ammonia plant dispute
A Russian entity has had its bid to overturn an anti-suit injunction won by an Italian engineering group rejected by the Court of Appeal. The injunction in question has been made in support of a multi-billion-euro ICC Arbitration.
For more on this story, see here.
15 January 2026
Blog Corner: “EU Sanctions and the Undoing of International Investment Arbitration”
A post for EJIL: Talk! will be of interest to academics and practitioners with a specialism in EU law and Investment Law. Professor Tony Marzal considers the relationship between EU law and Investment Arbitration and asks whether the EU’s policy objective of protecting its sanctions regime against Russia capable of compatibility with the ISDS system for dispute resolution, or instead, whether it risks undermining it.
To read this article, see here.
14 January 2026
UN: Evidence of systemic sexual violence during civil war in Sri Lanka
A report by the United Nations has found that sexual violence was “part of a deliberate, widespread, and systematic pattern of violations” by state security forces during the civil war in Sri Lanka.
The report is based on accounts of survivors of crimes committed against both women and men. The NGO Human Rights Watch’s deputy Asia director, Meenakshi Ganguly has stated:
“While the appalling rape and murder of Tamil women by Sri Lankan soldiers at the war’s end has long been known, the UN report shows that systematic sexual abuse was ignored, concealed, and even justified by Sri Lankan governments unwilling to punish those responsible.”
Researchers now say that the primary issue is accountability, although doubts have been cast on whether there is a viable basis for justice to be realised in respect of the victims.
For more on this story, see here.
To read the report, see here.
13 January 2026
Gaza: Hamas signals transfer of power to new technocratic body
The Islamic Resistance Movement - more commonly known as Hamas - has indicated that it is prepared to dissolve its government to hand the reins of power over Palestine to a new technocratic body.
The announcement was made by a spokesperson, Hazem Qassem in a televised address, stressing that the move would be “clear and final”.
The creation of the new board comes as part of a signed deal between Israel and Palestinian resistance factions, which is expected to govern Gaza temporarily as a transitional committee.
For more on this story, see here.
12 January 2026
Blog Corner: “The Art of the Steal: Does the EU’s Mutual Assistance Clause Protect Greenland?”
In early January, US President Donald Trump restated his government’s policy of acquiring Greenland. The US White House Press Secretary, has indicated that the US government are considering a range of options to acquire the island, including the utilisation of the US military to acquire the island presumably by force.
The sovereignty of Greenland has been settled since 1933 in the Eastern Greenland Case, when a ruling of the Permanent Court of International Justice (“PCIJ”) held that the unilateral declaration of a Norwegian official was effective and binding on Norway, and a basis to hold that Denmark alone was sovereign over the entire island.
The present proposals for transfer of the island to the US has been unambiguously rejected by the Danish government. Greenland itself is an autonomous region of the Kingdom of Denmark but relies on it for financial support as well as representation in foreign affairs.
In a post for Opinio Juris, Dr Aurel Sari considers to what extent Denmark can rely on Article 42(7) of the Treaty of the European Union (TFEU) to call upon mutual assistance from the EU should Greenland be taken by force.
To read this article, see here.
To read the historic PCIJ judgment, see here.