Tag Archives: UK
2 July 2014
On 20 June 2014, the UK High Court of Justice issued a preliminary ruling holding that Shell Nigeria could be held responsible under Nigerian law with regards to major oil spills which occurred in the region of Bodo in 2008 and 2009 and resulted in severe pollution in the Niger Delta. The case is been brought by more than 15000 Nigerian claimants. (more…)
Source: The Bodo Community and others v. The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited | [2014] EWHC 1973 (TCC) | 20 June 2014
Source: The Guardian | Shell faces payouts in Nigerian oil spill case
Source: Leigh Day | London High Court rules that Shell Nigeria could be legally liable for bunkering
25 June 2014
Last year, the British government approved the export of GBP 1.6bn worth of weapons to Saudi Arabia, which makes the Saudi market the UK’s biggest arms market. The export of GBP 51m worth of arms to Egypt has also been approved by the United Kingdom. These figures derive from government reports and were assembled by the Campaign Against the Arms Trade (CAAT), which estimates that last year the UK approved the export of in total GBP 2bn worth of weapons to oppressive governments. (more…)
Source: The Guardian | Saudis and Egypt among biggest markets for UK arms despite human rights breaches
Source: The Guardian | Egypt’s secret prison: ‘disappeared’ face torture in Azouli military jail
16 June 2014
A report from the charity Freedom From Torture (FFT) has raised concern that British aid money may be funding police who are employing rape as a means of state-sanctioned torture against women in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The report found that the Congolese police and security staff are systematically raping the female opponents of President Joseph Kabila, after they were imprisoned in state detention facilities. The report is based on medical evidence from 34 female political activists who fled from DRC to the UK. The findings have raised concerns about the British government’s programme to give over GBP 60m to the DRC’s national police and ‘internal security sector’ to enhance its performance and accountability. (more…)
Source: The Guardian | British aid money may unwittingly be funding rape and torture in DR Congo
13 June 2014
On 12 June, the United States President Barack Obama pledged military support to Iraq, possibly including air strikes, in order to halt militants from the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), who want to set up their own state in Iraq and Syria. Nevertheless, Washington said that the primary responsibility for security in Iraq rests with the Iraqi government and criticised Baghdad for the failure to secure national assistance with more inclusive policies. (more…)
Source: Reuters | Exclusive: Alarmed by Iraq, Iran open to shared role with U.S. - Iran official
Source: The Guardian | Obama pledges US support to Iraq as Isis militants approach Baghdad
Source: The New York Times | Russia Sees American ‘Adventurism’ in Iraq Behind Current Conflict
Source: The Guardian | Security collapse in Iraqi city of Mosul is not solely Maliki's responsibility
20 May 2014
On 17 May five West African countries agreed to a plan focusing on enhanced military cooperation and intelligence sharing with the purpose of combating the regional threat from Boko Haram, the extremist group which abducted more than 200 schoolgirls in northern Nigeria last month. The meeting was organised by French President Francois Hollande, at the request of Nigeria’s president, Goodluck Johnathan, and was also attended by the heads of state of Cameroon, Niger, Chad and Benin. Senior American, British and European diplomats were also present. (more…)
Source: The New York Times | West African Nations Set Aside Their Old Suspicions to Combat Boko Haram