[This is a roundup of news articles and other materials circulating on Occupation, Intervention, and Law and reflects a wide variety of opinions. It does not reflect the views of the O.I.L. Page Editors or of Jadaliyya. You may send your own recommendations for inclusion in each biweekly roundup to OIL@jadaliyya.com by Monday night of every other week.]
News
"Obama`s Secret Kill List - The Disposition Matrix," Ian Cobain
Cobain, writing for The Guardian, outlines the United States` use of a disposition matrix, a kind of database containing biographies of individuals thought to pose terroristic threats to the US, in forming kill lists for drone strikes.
"Israel `Targeted Missiles in Syria`," Associated Press in Washington
Unnamed United States officials claim Israel used an air strike in Syria in early July to target Russian-made cruise missiles.
"Napolitano Stepping Down as Homeland Security Chief," Peter Baker, Tamar Lewin
US Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano has announced she is stepping down to become President of the University of California system.
"Judge Halts Groin Searches at Guantanamo, Calling Them Abhorrent to Muslims," Charlie Savage
Chief Judge Royce C. Lamberth of the Federal District Court for the District of Columbia has ordered the military to halt searches at the prison at Guantanamo Bay where contact is made with the buttocks or genitals of detainees, calling the practice an attempt to "actively discourage" meetings with lawyers.
"US Plan to Arm Syrian Rebels Stalls Amid Congressional Disagreements," Karen DeYoung
DeYoung reports for The Washington Post that the administration has not delivered military supplies to the opposition in Syria due to negotiating the parameters of such a delivery with Congress.
"EU to Block Funding of Entities in Israeli Settlements," Joshua Chaffin, John Reed
Financial Times reports on the decision of the European Union, Israel`s largest trading partner, to block Israeli settlements on Palestinian land from receiving several forms of EU-sanctioned funding.
"US Bin Laden Raid was Act of War, Report Says," Asad Hasim
The Abbottabad Commission, a Pakistani government investigation into the US military raid to capture or kill Osama Bin Laden, has concluded that the raid amounted to an "act of war."
"Israeli PM Threatens to Strike Iran," Al Jazeera English
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has argued on American television that his country may use military force to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon under its new President, Hasan Rouhani.
"Guantanamo Hunger-Striker Numbers Have Fallen Below 100, Army Claims," Matt Williams
In an announcement met with skepticism by the lawyers of the detainees, the US military has indicated that 96 detainees are now classified as hunger strikers, down from a high of 106.
"Organisations Condemn Hate Speech Towards Syrian and Palestinian Refugees," Nourhan Dakroury
A report from Daily News Egypt summarizes a recent incitement against Syrian and Palestinian refugees by Egyptian media outlets.
Blogs
"The Government`s Bahlul En Banc Brief," Benjamin Wittes
Wittes, writing for Lawfare, releases the Government`s En Banc brief for Ali Hamza Al Bahlul v. United States, along with links to other resources associated with the case and a brief analysis of the merits of the government`s argument.
"Human Rights and Lefts," Azin Tadjdini
Tadjdini analyzes the academic right and left`s approach to human rights in the context of Egypt`s recent ousting of its President.
"McDonald`s Israel Refuses to Build in Illegal Settlements," Kevin Jon Heller
Heller praises McDonalds` decision to not open a branch in a West Bank Jewish settlement, describing it as one putting legal principle ahead of profit opportunity.
"Palestinian National Strike to Stop Israel`s `Prawer Plan`," Linah Alsaafin
Blogging for The Electronic Intifada, Alsaafin details the Palestinian "anger strike" to protest an Israeli plan to expropriate land in the Naqab desert home to thousands of Palestinian bedouins.
Commentary
"The Slandering of NY Jet Oday Aboushi," Dave Zirin
Zirin, writing for The Nation, criticizes a number of pieces accusing New York Jets lineman Oday Aboushi of anti-semitism, calling such charges unwarranted.
"What`s in it for Obama?," Stephen Holmes
In a review of The CIA, a Secret Army and a War at the Ends of the Earth by Mark Mazzetti, New York University School of Law Professor Stephen Holmes, discusses the concept that outright assassination has replaced the Bush Administration`s policy of detaining and interrogating suspected terrorists.
"Why Does Washington Always Get Iran Wrong?," Trita Parsi, Reza Marashi
In a roundtable for Al Jazeera English, Parsi and Marashi analyze the Washington policy community`s inability to read Tehran properly in light of the victory of Hasan Rouhani in the most recent presidential election.
"Trayvon Martin and the Irony of American Justice," Ta-Nehisi Coates
InThe Atlantic, Coates argues the verdict in the George Zimmerman trial was no aberration of the American justice system, but an example of the system working as intended--the latest in a pattern of American policy placing people of color "outside the law."
"Secretary Kerry`s Mission Impossible in Israel-Palestine," Henry Siegman
Siegman argues in The Nation that the US` commitment to defending Israel unconditionally makes a two-state solution to the Palestinian conflict impossible.
Reports
"US Voters Say Snowden is Whistle-Blower, Not Traitor (.pdf)," Quinnipiac University Polling Institute
Quinnipiac University provides opinion polls of attitudes in the US towards the government`s anti-terrorism policies, civil liberties, the PRISM program revealed by Edward Snowden and the merits of Snowden`s actions.
Conferences
"Politics and Principle in International Legal Theory"; 14-15 November, 2013; University of Michigan Law School; Call for papers here.
On Jadaliyya
"Drones: Myths and Reality in Pakistan," Jadaliyya Reports
"برافر، يجب ألا يمر," Abdullah AlBayyari
Haneen Naamih ",صحراء النقب ليست قاحلة"
"Brand Turkey and the Gezi Protests: Authoritarianism, Law, and Neoliberalism (Part Two)," Aslı Iğsız
"Brand Turkey and the Gezi Protests: Authoritarianism, Law, and Neoliberalism (Part One)," Aslı Iğsız
"Open Letter to Filmmaker Mohsen Makhmalbaf: Please Be a Messenger of Freedom for Iranian and Palestinian People," Jadaliyya Reports
"O.I.L. Monthly Edition (June 2013)," O.I.L. Editors
"New Texts Out Now: Lori Allen, The Rise and Fall of Human Rights: Cynicism and Politics in Occupied Palestine," Lori Allen
"The US War on Yemen: Drone Attacks," Jadaliyya Reports
Jadaliyya Reports ",شخصيّاتٌ فلسطينيّةٌ تحذّر من خطورة مبدأ تبادل الأراضي"
"Travel Diary to Palestine: Journeys Into Violence," Noura Erakat
"Enfranchising Refugees: PNC Elections in Comparative Context," Terry Rempel
"Towards a Prognosis: Diagnosing Fragmentation and Problems of Representation in Palestinian Politics," BADIL Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights
"Navigating the Void: Palestinian Youth Resistance in the Absence of Political Leadership," Nour Joudah
"Sudan`s Spreading Conflict II: War in Blue Nile," Jadaliyya Reports
Jadaliyya Reports ",مسارات" و"حملة المقاطعة" يبحثان آفاق مقاطعة إسرائيل وفرض العقوبات عليها"
Ibtisam Azem ",فلسطين في عدسة الدويري"
Zakaria Mohammed ",كيف تصنع أسطورة بالعرض الحي والمباشر"