The Supreme Court of Chile ruled April 4 that a proposed mega-scale hydroelectric dam complex in Patagonia does not violate the constitutional rights of residents opposing the project. Several environmental advocacy groups, including Chile Sustentable, challenged a ruling of the Court of Appeals of Puerto Montt which refused to issue an injunction to stop the construction of the dam, finding that the project does not violate the constitutional rights of those in opposition. The HidroAysen, a private Chilean venture, seeks to build five dams whose construction was approved by the Chilean government in May 2011. Chile Sustentable expressed disappointment following the ruling but vowed to continue to challenge the project in court, indicating the group is considering bringing a challenge to the project in an international forum.

The US Department of Defense (DoD) referred charges to a military commission on April 4 against Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four other alleged 9-11 conspirators being held at Guantánamo Bay. Mohammed, along with Muhammad Salih Mubarak Bin 'Attash, Ramzi Binalshibh, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali and Mustafa Ahmed Adam al Hawsawi, have been charged pursuant to the Military Commissions Act of 2009, and are accused of conspiracy, murder in violation of the law of war, attacking civilians, attacking civilian objects, intentionally causing serious bodily injury, destruction of property in violation of the law of war, hijacking aircraft and terrorism. The men could face the death penalty if convicted.

Libya's National Transitional Council on April 5 refused a request from the International Criminal Court (ICC) to hand over Saif al-Islam Qaddafi, the son of former leader Moammar Qaddafi. Libyan officials have stated they will keep Saif al-Islam prisoner and he will stand trial within the country. This decision comes after the ICC ruled this week that Saif al-Islam must be handed over to the court, marking a departure from previous statements that Saif al-Islam could remain in Libya and be tried there. These statements were met with protest from human rights organizations that believed it would be almost impossible for Saif al-Islam to receive a fair trial in Libya. One of the big differences between the ICC and Libya is the possible sentence imposed if Saif al-Islam is found guilty—he faces the death penalty if found guilty in Libyan court, but only a prison term if convicted by the ICC. The ICC still claims jurisdiction over Saif al-Islam because it issued a warrant for his arrest last June.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) on March 30 agreed to hear the case of Guantánamo Bay detainee and Algerian national Djamel Ameziane. The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) and the Center for Justice and International Law (CEJIL), co-counsel for Ameziane, states that Ameziane has been held at Guantánamo Bay without any charge or trial for more than 10 years. This is the first time that the IACHR has agreed to accept jurisdiction over a Guantánamo detainee. J Wells Dixon, senior staff attorney at CCR, stated:

On March 26, the US Supreme Court ruled 8-1 in MBZ v. Clinton that the ability of a US national born in Jerusalem to list Israel as place of birth on a passport is not a political question, but remanded the case for a ruling specifically on the issue. The US State Department argued that this question was political because it informs the government's foreign policy toward recognition of Israel as sovereign over Jerusalem. Chief Justice John Roberts, writing for the majority, disagreed, due to the suit being based on a statutory enactment by Congress:

The former head of the Polish intelligence services may face charges for his assistance to the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in operating a secret prison in Poland. Zbigniew Siemiatkowski told Polish newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza on March 27 that he could face charges for his association with the prison and the allegations of torture that occurred there.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) March 14 issued its first verdict, a unanimous decision that Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) militia leader Thomas Lubanga Dyilo is guilty of the war crimes of enlisting and conscripting children under the age of 15 and using them to participate actively in hostilities. The three-judge Trial Chamber I found that Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo established beyond a reasonable doubt that Lubanga, former president of the Union of Congolese Patriots (UPC), coordinated and actively supported the enlistment of child soldiers into his Patriotic Force for the Liberation of the Congo (FPLC) militia, the military wing of the UPC believed to have committed large-scale human rights abuses in Congo's violent Ituri district. Lubanga and his co-perpetrators designed to build an army for the purpose of establishing and maintaining political and military control over Ituri, a plan which resulted in boys and girls under the age of 15 being conscripted and used to participate actively in hostilities in 2002 and 2003. The court determined that Lubanga's contribution was essential to the common plan, that Lubanga personally used children below the age of 15 as his bodyguards, sex slaves and fighters and that he regularly saw guards of other UPC/FPLC staff members who were below the age of 15. Lubanga requested a separate sentencing hearing under article 76(2) of the Rome Statute, and he is entitled to appeal his conviction within 30 days. He faces life imprisonment.

Syria held a referendum Feb. 26 to vote on a new constitution. The gesture towards the opposition by President Bashar al-Assad has widely been seen as an empty one, with much of the international community calling it a "sham." The vote comes just one day after 89 people were reportedly killed in Homs, the center of the opposition. The proposed constitution will impose term limits on the president as well as provide for a multi-party system. However, the term limits will theoretically begin once the constitution passes, meaning Assad's previous time in office will not be counted against the term limits.