Judges with the United Nations’s top court say in a landmark climate decision that a “clean, healthy and sustainable environment” is a human right. The International Court of Justice is delivering an advisory opinion Wednesday about nations’ obligations to tackle climate change and consequences they may face if they don’t. The non-binding opinion, which runs to over 500 pages, is seen as a potential turning point in international climate law. Enshrining a sustainable environment as a human right paves the way for other legal actions, including states returning to the ICJ to hold each other to account, as well as domestic lawsuits....
Prosecutors Apologise To South Korean Woman Convicted Of Biting Man’s Tongue Over Alleged Sexual Assault
Prosecutors in South Korea have apologised to a woman who was convicted for defending herself during a sexually violent attack more than 60 years ago. Choi Mal-ja was sentenced to 10 months in prison, suspended for two years, for biting off part of her attacker’s tongue as he allegedly tried to rape her in 1964, when she was 18 years old. Inspired by the country’s #MeToo movement, MsChoi, now 78, has campaigned for years to have her conviction overturned. Her retrial began in the city of Busan on Wednesday, where prosecutors issued an apology and asked for the court to...
Syria Asks Turkey For Defense Support After Sectarian Clashes, Turkish Officials Say
Syria’s interim government has requested Turkey’s support to strengthen its defense capabilities, Turkish officials said, following sectarian violence over the past two weeks that increased tensions in Syria and drew Israeli intervention. The defense ministry officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity according to procedures, said Wednesday that Syria has also sought assistance to combat “terrorist organizations,” including the Islamic State group. Turkey — which has long expressed readiness to assist Syria — was working toward providing training, advisory services and technical support to help strengthen Syria’s defense capacity, the officials added. Syrian officials could not be immediately reached for comment. Tensions escalated in...