International Law Prof Blog

Saudi Arabia ends use of death penalty for juveniles

Saudi Arabia issued a royal decree earlier this week ending capital punishment for individuals who were under the age of 18 at the time of commission of the crime for which they are convicted (except in cases under the counter-terrorism law). Instead of the death penalty, the maximum penalty for juveniles will be 10 years at a juvenile detention facility.

According to Amnesty International, Saudi Arabia executed a record number 184 people in 2019. Amnesty International has called on Saudi Arabia to eliminate the death penalty for all persons. 

Article 6.5 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights prohibits the imposition of the death penalty on persons under the age of 18. Saudi Arabia has not yet joined the ICCPR.

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Trial for Accused Syrian War Criminals Begins

While the world has been distracted by the coronavirus, the process of international justice continues to slowly creak along.  On Thursday this week, a trial began in Germany for Syrians who are suspected of war crimes. A former high-ranking Syrian intelligence officer, Anwar Raslan, accused of crimes against humanity, will face survivors of his alleged torture. A second Syrian man will also be tried for aiding and abetting. 

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Snapshot of the Covid-19 Pandemic (April 18, 2020)

Case of Covid-19 in the world as of April 18, 2021:

• 2,306,588 cases
• 158,705 deaths
• 590,367 recovered

The most cases are in the United States as of April 18, 2020:

• 726,856 cases
• 38,200 deaths

Most of those U.S. cases are in the state of New York, which by itself has more cases than any other country (other than the United States).

• 235,395 cases
• 17,131 deaths

Here are the countries reporting the most cases

• United States (726,856 cases and 38,200 deaths)
• Spain (191,726 cases and 20,043 deaths)
• Italy (175,925 cases and 23,227 deaths)
• France (147,969 cases and 19,323 deaths)
• Germany (142,751 cases and 4,412 deaths)
• United Kingdom (114,217 cases and 15,564 deaths)
• People's Republic of China (82,719 cases and 4,632 deaths)
• Turkey (82,329 cases and 1,890 deaths)
• Islamic Republic of Iran (80,868 cases and 5,031 deaths)
• Belgium (37,183 cases and 5,453 deaths)
• Russia (36,793 cases and 313 deaths)
• Brazil (35,025 cases and 2,203 deaths)
• Canada (33,137 cases and 1,346 deaths)
• The Netherlands (31,589 cases and 3,601 deaths)
• Switzerland (27,404 cases and 1,366 deaths)
• Portugal (19,685 cases and 687 deaths)
• India (14,792 cases and 488 deaths)
• Ireland (14,758 cases and 571 deaths)
• Austria (14,571 cases and 443 deaths)
• Peru (14,420 cases and 348 deaths)
• Sweden (13,822 cases and 1,511 deaths)
• Israel (13,265 cases and 1,511 deaths)
• South Korea (10,653 cases and 232 deaths)
• Japan (9,787 cases and 190 deaths)
• Chile (9,730 cases and 126 deaths)
• Ecuador (9,022 cases and 456 deaths)
• Poland (8,742 cases and 347 deaths)
• Romania (8,418 cases and 421 deaths)
• Saudi Arabia (8,274 cases and 92 deaths)
• Pakistan (7,638 cases and 143 deaths)
• Denmark (7,242 cases and 346 deaths)
• Norway (7,036 cases and 163 deaths)
• Mexico (6,874 cases and 546 deaths)
• Czech Republic / Czechia (6,606 cases and 181 deaths)
• Australia (6,565 cases and 69 deaths)
• United Arab Emirates (6,302 cases and 37 deaths)
• Indonesia (6,248 cases and 535 deaths)
• Philippines (6,087 cases and 397 deaths)
• Serbia (5,994 cases and 117 deaths)
• Singapore (5,992 cases and 11 deaths)
• Malaysia (5,305 cases and 88 deaths)
• Ukraine (5,106 cases and 133 deaths)
• Qatar (5,008 cases and 8 deaths)

Countries and territories with Covid-19 cases reporting the lowest number of  cases as of April 18, 2020 include:

• Kingdom of Bhutan (5 cases)
• Burundi (5 cases)
• British Virgin Islands  (4 cases)
• Sao Tome and Principe (4 cases)
• South Sudan (4 cases)
• Anguilla (3 cases)
• Caribbean Netherlands (3 cases)
• Saint Pierre Miquelon (1 case)
• Yemen (1 case)

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ABA Midyear Meeting 2021 to be Held in Chicago in February

The American Bar Association midyear meeting for 2021 has been moved from Orlando to Chicago. It is scheduled for February 10-15, 2021. Click here for more information.

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Earth Day

Wednesday, April 22, 2020 will mark the 50th anniversary of Earth Day.

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Law Library of Congress Webinar on Fighting Pandemics: Foreign and International Legislative Frameworks,

Laney Zhang and Nicolas Boring of the Law Library of Congress will present a webinar on Fighting Pandemics: Foreign and International Legislative Frameworks, at 2:00 PM on Thursday, April 23, 2020. This webinar is the latest installment in the Law Library’s new series of webinars focused on foreign and comparative law. Focusing on select European and Asian jurisdictions, Ms. Zhang and Mr. Boring will summarize some of the pre-existing legislative frameworks before discussing new laws and regulations adopted to face the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as outlining the Law Library’s recent research, including a report on the continuity of legislative activities during emergency situations in 36 foreign jurisdictions.

To register for the webinar, please click here or call (202) 707-5080.

Hat tip to the Law Library of Congress.

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Take the July Bar Exam in September

Law.com reported that the National Conference of Bar Examiners will offer bar exams on September 9-10, and again on September 30-October 1. These dates will allow jurisdictions to skip the July bar exam and offer it instead in September.

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Video Message for Law Students

The law faculty at Loyola University New Orleans made a short video for its students, but actually they expressed the wish of every law faculty for each of its students. Have a look by clicking here.

Hat tips to Dean Madeleine M. Landrieu and Professor Mary Garvey Algero.

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Hague Adoption Convention Now Has 102 Parties

On April 1, 2020, the Convention of 29 May 1993 on the Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption (the “Adoption Convention”) entered into force for the Republic of the Congo, following the deposit of its instrument of accession on 11 December 2019. The Adoption Convention now has 102 Contracting Parties.

The Republic of the Congo is not a yet a member of the Hague Conference on Private International Law. The Adoption Convention is the first HCCH Convention it has joined.

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Use Congress.Gov to Stay Up to Date with U.S. Federal Legislation

Keeping current with federal legislation is a time-consuming research task.

Or is it?

Congress.gov offers several ways to track federal legislation and legislative actions. We recommend a blog post by Robert Brammer, "Congress.gov Keeps You Up to Date with Email Alerts."

Click here to read about email alerts from Congress.gov.

(mew)