Recent Articles
Options for Accountability in Syria
The Security Council is poised today to vote on a resolution referring the situation in Syria to the International Criminal Court (ICC). This would be the third such referral following…
Does the U.N. General Assembly have the authority to establish an International Criminal Tribunal for Syria?
By all accounts, the U.N. Security Council session this morning will not result in a referral of the situation in Syria to the International Criminal Court (ICC). Because Syria…
News Roundup and Notes: May 22, 2014
Before the start of business, Just Security provides a curated summary of up-to-the-minute developments at home and abroad. Here’s today’s news. Guantánamo Bay U.S. District…
The one news item from today’s AUMF hearing
Consistent with the President’s recent War Powers reports, DOD General Counsel Stephen Preston confirmed that Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) is the only “associated…
Why We Can’t Support the New USA FREEDOM Act
[Editor’s Note: Just Security has been closely following the congressional proposals, including the USA FREEDOM Act, introduced in recent months aimed to curb the administration’s surveillance authorities.…
USA Freedom Act: Oh, Well. Whatever. Nevermind.
The initially promising USA Freedom Act could have ended the previously secret government practices of collecting Americans’ calling records, internet transactional information…
Lavabit’s Owner Goes Public: His Legal Ordeal Makes For Bad Law
I’ve written several times here about the Department of Justice’s efforts to force secure email provider Lavabit to turn over its encryption keys. The DOJ wanted transactional…
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Hearing on the AUMF after Iraq and Afghanistan
This morning at 10:00am, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is holding an important hearing on the future of the AUMF after Iraq and Afghanistan. Testifying before the committee…
5 Key NDAA Amendments to Watch For
Congress is considering the National Defense Authorization Act this week, and several proposed amendments in the House to this annual authorization bill would have significant…
News Roundup and Notes: May 21, 2014
Before the start of business, Just Security provides a curated summary of up-to-the-minute developments at home and abroad. Here’s today’s news. Drones The Department of…
Judge Bates and FISA Reform
Over at Lawfare, I have a short post on the terribly weak provisions with regard to a “special advocate” to argue before the FISA Court in the Manager’s Amendment…
Is the CIA Drone Program More Accurate than the DOD’s—and if so, why?
Some commentators suggest that we have the data: CIA-directed drone strikes appear to involve fewer civilian casualties (e.g., less collateral damage) on average than DOD-directed drone…