‘The six-year-long British inquiry into the 2003 Iraq invasion and its aftermath will not be published before the general election, prompting an outcry from those demanding that the long overdue reckoning should be put before the voters.’
The Guardian, 21st January 2015
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
‘A Commons debate on the delayed Iraq War Inquiry will attempt to pressure Downing Street into fast-tracking its publication before the general election in May. David Davis, the former shadow home secretary, led a group of cross-party MPs in winning time for the debate which will be held on January 29.’
The Independent, 13th January 2015
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘Q: What happened on 14 May 2004?
A: The summer of 2004 saw a sharp spike in attacks on Coalition forces by the Mahdi Army militia in southern Iraq. British troops were ambushed at two locations either side of the “Danny Boy” vehicle checkpoint, near Al Amarah. Witnesses said the fighting was particularly fierce and had involved the use of bayonets by British troops for the first time since the Falklands War.’
The Independent, 17th December 2014
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘There’s anger, as much as relief and a sense of vindication, inside the Ministry of Defence and the Army at the end of this long public inquiry into allegations of murder and abuse by British soldiers in Iraq in 2004.’
BBC News, 17th December 2014
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Iraqi Civilians v Ministry of Defence [2014] EWHC 3686 (QB); [2014] WLR (D) 496
‘The legal effect of UN Security Council Resolutions 1483 of 22 May 2003 and 1511 of 16 October 2003 was that they imposed a duty on the United Kingdom in its role as an occupying power in Iraq to detain individuals where to do so was necessary for imperative reasons of security. However, nothing in the language of the Resolutions authorised the taking of such a measure in so far as doing so violated the United Kingdom’s obligation to secure rights under article 5 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.’
WLR Daily, 7th November 2014
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
‘The Iraq Inquiry report will “not be a cover-up in any shape or form”, the UK’s top civil servant has insisted.’
BBC News, 9th September 2014
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘When will a court order an inquiry into the deaths in combat of soldiers serving overseas? Following recent judgments of the English and Strasbourg courts extending the application of the European Convention on Human Rights to zones of armed conflict overseas in certain circumstances, the question is likely to arise frequently over the coming years. In R(Long), the Divisional Court strongly endorsed the doctrine of combat immunity and appeared to set its face against the recent rise in claims against the MoD by soldiers deployed abroad and their next of kin.’
UK Human Rights Blog, 27th July 2014
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
‘The Chilcot inquiry, which is expected to contain damning criticism of the way Tony Blair and his close advisers led Britain into war against Iraq, is unlikely to be published until next year, the Guardian has learned.’
The Guardian, 26th June 2014
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
‘The Law Society has demanded action from the Home Secretary, Theresa May, over a string of violent threats dating back a decade against the human rights lawyer who brought cases against British soldiers over alleged brutality in Iraq and Afghanistan.’
The Independent, 6th June 2014
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘Allegations that British troops were responsible for a series of war crimes after the invasion of Iraq are to be examined by the international criminal court (ICC) at The Hague, the specialist tribunal has announced.’
The Guardian, 13th May 2014
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
‘On 26 March 2014 the Supreme Court gave a lengthy judgment in Kennedy v Charity Commission [2014] UKSC 20, running to 248 paragraphs. The Supreme Court decision is full of surprises. The Court decided to depart from the arguments of the parties- the majority insisted that common law rights rather than the Human Rights Act were the key to the case; and then embarked on an extended and wide ranging obiter discussion of public law issues, revealing further disagreements between the Justices.’
UK Constitutional Law Association, 18th April 2014
Source: www.ukconstitutionallaw.org
Kennedy (Appellant) v The Charity Commission (Respondent) [2014] UKSC 20 (YouTube)
Supreme Court, 26th March 2014
‘An unprecedented rise in court actions is placing a huge burden on the Ministry of Defence and could have the unintended consequence of leading to even more civilian casualties, according to a report by MPs.’
The Guardian, 2nd April 2014
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
‘The Supreme Court’s much anticipated judgments in Kennedy v The Charity Commission make for a long read. But they are very important. All the parties in Kennedy were represented by Counsel from 11KBW: Andrew Sharland for Mr Kennedy; Karen Steyn and Rachel Kamm for the Charity Commission and the Secretary of State; Ben Hooper for the ICO; and Christopher Knight for the Media Legal Defence Initiative and Campaign for Freedom of Information.’
Panopticon, 28th March 2014
Source: www.panopticonblog.com
‘Kennedy v. Charity Commission et al, Supreme Court, 26 March 2014. In judgments running to 90 pages, the Supreme Court dismissed this appeal by Mr Kennedy, a Times journalist, for access to documents generated by the Charity Commission under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 concerning three inquiries between 2003 and 2005 into the Mariam Appeal. This appeal was George Galloway’s response to the sanctions imposed on Iraq following the first Gulf War, and little Mariam was a leukaemia sufferer. Mr Kennedy’s suspicion, amongst others, was that charitable funds had been used by Galloway for political campaigning.’
UK Human Rights Blog, 26th March 2014
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
‘This week, a challenge to the legal aid reforms by the Howard League for Penal Reform is rejected, while campaigners seeking an inquiry into the action of British soldiers in Malaya in 1948 face similar disappointment. Meanwhile, some of the most senior judges in the UK give their views on the role of the judiciary today.’
UK Human Rights Blog, 23rd March 2014
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
‘Claims that UK soldiers unlawfully killed Iraqi civilians in 2004 have not been supported by evidence heard by a public inquiry into their deaths, lawyers for their families have said.’
BBC News, 20th March 2014
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘Legal experts from around the world are to join calls for an investigation into whether British politicians and senior military figures should be prosecuted for alleged war crimes in Iraq.’
The Independent, 12th January 2014
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘This week, there are criticisms over the delay of inquiries both into the mistreatment of terrorism suspects and the Iraq War. Meanwhile, discussion continues over the relevance of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights for UK law, and a dying asylum seeker on hunger strike will not be released.’
UK Human Rights Blog, 24th November 2013
Source: www.ukhumanrightsblog.com
“A UK businessman who sold fake bomb detectors around the world has lost a challenge against his 10-year sentence.”
BBC News, 12th November 2013
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
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