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International Legal News - 27 January 2025

The following media round up on international and foreign policy issues from around the world for the period of 20 January to 26 January 2025. 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.


Round up on international and foreign policy issues from around the world
Guernica 37 International Legal News

25 January 2025

 

Sweeping halt to foreign aid does not apply to arms for Israel and Egypt

 

A sudden and sweeping halt to U.S. foreign aid by the Trump administration does not apply to weapons support to Israel and Egypt and emergency food assistance, according to a memo issued by the department to bureaus and US missions overseas.

 

The memo on foreign aid was sent by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and lays out how the State Department, the linked United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and other agencies are expected to execute an executive order halting foreign aid during a 90-day reassessment period. President Trump signed the executive order, soon after his inauguration.

 

 

23 January 2025

 

ICC Prosecutor has filed two applications for arrest warrants against Taliban leaders for the crime against humanity of gender persecution in Afghanistan  

 

On 23 January, the Office of the Prosecutor of the ICC issued a statement announcing the applications for arrest warrants against the Taliban Supreme Leader, Haibatullah Akhundzada, and the Taliban Chief Justice, Abdul Hakim Haqqani, for their suspected responsibility in persecuting Afghan girls and women, as well as persons whom the Taliban perceived as not conforming with their ideological expectations of gender identity or expression, and persons whom the Taliban perceived as allies of girls and women. This persecution was committed from at least 15 August 2021 until the present day, across the territory of Afghanistan.

 

The Prosecutor’s applications for arrest warrants will be considered by ICC Pre-Trial Chamber judges, to determine whether they establish reasonable grounds to believe that the named individuals committed the alleged crimes. The Office of the Prosecutor also stated that investigations are ongoing. This means that further applications, both for other persons and alleged crimes, could still follow.

 

 

23 January 2025

 

Rohingya survivor asks US regulator to investigate Meta’s potential role in Myanmar atrocities

 

Maung Sawyeddollah, a Rohingya human rights activist and atrocity survivor, has filed a whistleblower complaint with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), asking the agency to investigate Meta for alleged violations of securities laws stemming from the company’s misrepresentations to shareholders on its substantial contribution to what the US government has classified as genocide perpetrated against the Rohingya in Myanmar in 2017. 

 

“In Myanmar, where Facebook served as the primary social media platform and news source, the reckless deployment of Meta’s harmful algorithms, with negligible safeguards in place, promoted widespread anti-Rohingya online campaigns which contributed to offline violence,” said Eva Buzo, Executive Director at Victim Advocates International.

 

In 2015 and 2016 Meta objected to shareholder proposals to conduct a human rights impact assessment and to set up an internal committee to oversee the company’s policies and practices concerning international public issues, including human rights.

 

 

23 January 2025

 

The Philippines to initiate proceedings against China over alleged environmental damage in the South China Sea

 

The Philippines accuses China of actions that have caused significant harm to marine ecosystems and biodiversity within its exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Justice Secretary of the Philippines Crispin Remulla announced that the country will seek compensation, with potential forums including the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) or the International Court of Justice.

 

This follows a 2013 arbitration case brought by the Philippines under UNCLOS, which resulted in a 2016 PCA ruling invalidating China’s historic claims to the South China Sea and condemning certain Chinese activities as unlawful and environmentally destructive. China did not participate in the case and has consistently refused to recognise the tribunal’s decisions. The Philippines now wants to hold Beijing accountable for what it says is its harvesting of giant clams and substantial environmental damage to coral reefs in the Philippines’ EEZ. “We’re in discussion and the decision has to come very soon," Justice Secretary Crispin Remulla said, referring to which legal forum to file the case. “The sins are really so obvious,” he said. “In the end, this is the best way to attack. There are many ways of solving a problem, but this is one of the most novel ways.”

 

 

22 January 2025

 

US Paris Agreement withdrawal threatens global efforts to tackle climate change

 

United States President Donald Trump announced the US’ withdrawal from the 2015 Paris Agreement, the landmark international treaty aiming to limit the rise of global temperatures to 1.5 degrees Celsius. It is the second time the US, the world’s second-largest greenhouse gas emitter behind only China, withdraws from the deal. Months after taking office for the first time in 2017, Trump signed an order to withdraw from the pact, a move President Joe Biden promptly reversed on his first day in office in 2021. The latest withdrawal is likely to take effect within a year.

 

“I’m immediately withdrawing from the unfair, one-sided Paris climate accord rip-off,” Trump said as he signed the executive order at his rally at a downtown Washington arena ahead of his inauguration. “The United States will not sabotage our own industries while China pollutes with impunity,” he stated.

 

 

20 January 2025

 

Report submitted to UN Special Rapporteur on the right to health regarding Thailand’s violations of prisoners’ right to health

 

The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) alleged that Thailand has consistently violated prisoners’ right to health under international law, in a report submitted to the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to health. Prior to her country visit to Thailand, Special Rapporteur on the right to health Tlaleng Mofokeng called for input on the situation in the country. In its report, FIDH argued that Thai authorities have “consistently failed to respect, protect, and fulfill the right of prisoners and detainees to the ‘enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health,’” as protected under Article 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights.

 

Known as the Nelson Mandela Rules, the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners represents the general international consensus on the essential elements of prison management to respect the basic human rights of prisoners.

 

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