States must fully investigate complicity in secret detentions and renditions
The ICJ today called on all states to end involvement in these systematic human rights violations perpetrated under the guise of countering terrorism.
USA: Disclosure of CIA tracking of international bank transactions
On 23 June, US newspapers reported the existence of a CIA program tracking financial transactions recorded on the database of the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications (SWIFT). Government officials defended the program as legal and necessary to...USA: Supreme Court rules military commissions illegal
On 29 June, in Hamdan v, Rumsfeld, the Supreme Court ruled that military commissions, established by the President to try terrorist suspects detained at Guantánamo Bay, violated US military law and the Geneva Conventions. The Court ruled that President Bush had no...USA: Department of Defense prohibits evidence obtained by torture
On 24 March, the Department of Defense issued a Military Commission Instruction, prohibiting the prosecution from presenting statements obtained through torture and prohibiting their admission by the Commission. The Instruction was criticized by human rights...USA: President Bush signs renewal of Patriot Act
On 9 March, President Bush signed legislation to renew the Patriot Act. The renewal makes some of the Act’s provisions permanent, including the interception of wire, oral, or electronic communications. Limited amendments were introduced to strengthen the protection of...Recent News
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