UN Human Rights Committee criticizes Jordan and Poland for terrorism laws

On Jordan, the Committee was concerned about the “vague and broad definition of “terrorist activities in the 2006 Prevention of Terrorism Act”. It also was concerend at the high number of reported cases of torrture iand ill-treatment in detention centres, particularly in the GID facilities. It was also concerned at the absence of a genuinely [...]

Jordan’s cyber law criticized

Jordan passed a provisional cyberspace law this month that Paris-based Reporters Without Borders said creates a “legislative arsenal that can be used to punish those whose posts upset the authorities.” Penalties range from fines to forced labor. In a letter Tuesday to Abdullah, the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists said the law could be [...]

HRW: France, Germany and UK should stop using foreign intelligence obtained under torture in the fight against terrorism

France, Germany, and the United Kingdom use foreign intelligence obtained under torture in the fight against terrorism, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. The 62-page report, “No Questions Asked: Intelligence Cooperation with Countries that Torture,” analyzes the ongoing cooperation by the governments of France, Germany, and the United Kingdom with foreign intelligence services [...]

Harith Al-Dari-s son on terror list

Jordan has placed Muthana Harith Al-Dari, the son of Harith Al-Dari, secretary-general of the Association of Muslim Scholars in Iraq, on the terror blacklist, pursuant to the decision of the U.N. Security Council Al-Qaida and Taliban Sanctions Committee. The U.S. accuses Muthana Harith Al-Dari of aiding resistance elements in Iraq.

UK delays new guidelines for intelligence agencies, will continue diplomatic assurances deportations in 2010

New British guidelines on handling terrorism suspects held overseas have been delayed over a dispute about how to deal with potentially life-saving information from detainees who may be at risk of torture by allies. Prime Minister Gordon Brown promised a year ago that new rules would be drawn up, and the government was expected to [...]

Jordan terror plot trial

Ten alleged Islamist extremists accused of plotting to carry out attacks against Jordan’s army and intelligence service last year pleaded not guilty at the start of their trial on Sunday. “The 10 men, who embrace the takfirism ideology, pleaded not guilty today at the (military) state security court to charges of plotting to carry out [...]

UN experts conclude major study into use of secret detention in the fight against terrorism

Despite the fact that international law clearly prohibits secret detention, the practice is widespread and “reinvigorated” by the so-called global war on terror, several independent United Nations experts stated, outlining a series of steps aimed at curbing this human rights violation. In a 222-page study which will be presented to the United Nations Human Rights [...]

US-Jordan intelligence relationship

The Washington Post reports that Jordan is playing an increasingly vital role in the fight against al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups, sometimes in countries far beyond the Middle East, according to current and former government officials from both countries.”We have a close partnership with the Jordanians on counterterrorism matters,” acknowledged a U.S. counterterrorism official, who [...]

Academic Articles and opinions worth reading

Jens David Ohlin (Cornell Law School) has posted The Torture Lawyers (Harvard International Law Journal, Forthcoming) on SSRN. Laurence R. Helfer (Duke Univ. – Law) and Emilie Hafner-Burton have a new piece on “Opting Out: Derogations from Human Rights Treaties in National Emergencies“ Peter Margulies (Roger Williams University School of Law) has posted The Wages [...]

New NGO reports and academic articles of interest

Human Rights Watch has a new report on administrative detentions in Jordan. Read it here.The Open Society Initiative has a new report analyzing ethnic profiling both in ordinary policing and in counterterrorism, and finds that it is not just a violation of European laws and international human rights norms, but also an ineffective use of [...]