Jul 25, 2005 | News
The ICJ unequivocally condemns the bombings that rocked the city of Sharm al-Sheikh on Friday night, which left at least 64 people dead and hundreds of wounded, according to the latest official estimates.
“Indiscriminate attacks against civilians are totally prohibited under international law and cannot be justified under any circumstances”, said Nicholas Howen, ICJ Secretary-General. “Perpetrators of such killings against civilians have to be brought to justice, in full compliance with international human rights law”, he added.
However, in view of the large number of reportedly arbitrary arrests that took place after previous attacks, such as the bombing in Taba in October 2004 and the bombing in the Cairo Bazaar in April 2005, the ICJ recalls in particular that human rights law forbids arbitrary, secret or incommunicado detention, as well as torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. As the authorities have already started arresting suspects, it is crucial to respect such human rights obligations and to try perpetrators of such attacks in ordinary courts that respect fair trial standards.
The ICJ expresses its condolences to the relatives and families of the victims of the bombings.
Jul 7, 2005 | News
The ICJ and JUSTICE, its British Section, condemn today’s bomb attacks killing and injuring civilians in the city of London.
“The indiscriminate targeting and killing of civilians can never be justified morally or legally. Those responsible must be brought to justice within the criminal justice system and in accordance with international standards”, says Nicholas Howen, ICJ Secretary-General.
“In times of crisis, it is all the more important to strengthen our efforts to uphold the very principles of liberty, human rights and the rule of law that once again came under attack today,” says Roger Smith, Director of JUSTICE.
The ICJ and JUSTICE express their condolences to the victims of the bombings, their families and close ones and their sympathy with the people of London.
UK-lawyers condemn attack London-press release-2005 (full text in English, PDF)
May 12, 2005 | Advocacy, Non-legal submissions
On 10 May, the ICJ made a submission to the Committee against Torture (CAT) on the recently introduced draft law on counter-terrorism in the Kingdom of Bahrain.
This law – if adopted – would greatly reduce safeguards against torture, cruel or inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment and negatively affect the implementation of the Convention against Torture in Bahrain. The ICJ invited the Committee to assess the impact of this draft law on the implementation of Bahrain’s obligations under the Convention and make recommendations to Bahrain to ensure that the law complies with international human right standards.
Bahrain-impact law counter-terrorism-non-judicial submission-2005 (full text in English, PDF)
Bahrain-impact law counter-terrorism-non-judicial submission-2005 (full text in Arabic, PDF)
May 12, 2005 | Advocacy, Non-legal submissions
In May 2005, the ICJ and other rights groups issued a joint statement on the increasing use of diplomatic assurances by States as the basis for the transfer of alleged terrorist suspects in countries where they seriously risk torture or ill-treatment.
The statement was issued by the following NGOs: ICJ, Amnesty International, Association for the Prevention of Torture, Human Rights Watch, International Federation of Action by Christians for the Abolition of Torture, International Federation for Human Rights, International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights, and World Organisation Against Torture.
risk torture ill treatment-non-judicial submission-2005 (full text in English, PDF)
May 4, 2005 | News
Following the lifting of the state of emergency in Nepal by King Gyanendra, the ICJ and other human rights groups called for the restoration of all fundamental rights formally suspended under the state of emergency.
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