Gabriel Helou

“ The amendments to the Rome Statute on the crime of aggression were adopted by consensus at the Kampala Review Conference in June 2010. The British and French were part of that consensus. The definition of the crime of aggression is as follows ”

“ Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron lost a symbolic vote on military action in Syria by 285 votes to 272. Cameron pledged not to override the parliament's decision .”

"When the president reaches a determination about the appropriate response ... and a legal justification is required to substantiate or to back up that decision, we'll produce one on our  own ." So basically the US will invent new “legal rules” to justify illegal action.

I urge everyone not to use the word "strike" for any possible Western action against Syria. Emphasis should be on a crime of aggression.

It is rather astonishing that some authors refer to Article 52 of the UN Charter - dealing with Regional Arrangements - as a “legal basis” for carrying out military action against Syria, without Security Council authorization. By invoking Article 52, they point out to the Arab League and NATO, as regional organizations. Now it is true that the aforementioned Article acknowledges the right to establish regional organizations or agencies, as well as their role in the maintenance of international peace and security, which includes taking “appropriate action” to this effect. However, those authors seem to read or interpret Article 52 as a “green light” or as a plain authorization for regional organizations - like NATO - to act, even militarily, to maintain international peace and security. I wish that those who invoke Article 52 would care to read the Article that follows. Article 53(1) of the Charter clearly and expressly states: “… no enforcement action shall be taken unde...

“A federal appeals court on Tuesday invalidated a U.S. law that was designed to allow American citizens born in Jerusalem to choose to have Israel listed as their birthplace on passports contrary to long-standing U.S. foreign policy. A unanimous three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that the president - and not lawmakers - had sole authority to say who controls the historic holy city claimed by Israelis and Palestinians. In the U.S. government, the president "exclusively holds the power to determine whether to recognize a foreign sovereign," wrote Judge Karen Henderson for the panel. Since the founding of Israel in 1948, U.S. presidents have declined to state a position on the status of Jerusalem, leaving it as one of the thorniest issues to be resolved in possible future peace talks .”

“ Belgium swore in Philippe as its new king on Sunday after the abdication of his 79-year-old father Albert. Philippe, 53, became the seventh king of the 183-year-old country which is split between a Dutch-speaking north, where some want to break free from Belgium, and a more pro-royal and pro-Belgian French-speaking south. Philippe took his oath in Belgium's three official languages - Dutch, French and German - in parliament after Albert signed a legislative act to step down, becoming the second Belgian monarch to do so . ”