Former Somali prime minister Mohamed Ali Samantar on Feb. 23 accepted legal responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity before the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. The civil suit was brought by the Center for Justice and Accountability (CJA) in 2004 against Samantar, who had been living in Washington, DC, for more than 15 years, on behalf of five Somalis under the Torture Victim Protection Act of 1991. The plaintiff Somalis had been granted asylum in the US after being imprisoned and tortured while Samantar was in office under dictator Siad Barre. Samantar said he will not contest his legal responsibility but made clear that by doing this he is not admitting guilt. The CJA said this is the first time anyone will be held legally responsible for the events that occurred during Barre's regime.

A federal immigration judge in Florida decided Feb. 23 that former Salvadoran defense minister Gen. Carlos Eugenio Vides Casanova can be deported for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during El Salvador's civil war. Judge James Grim found that Vides assisted in both the killing of four US churchwomen in 1980 and the torture of two Salvadorans, who testified against him in hearings last spring in the Orlando immigration court. Although this was not an official order for Vides' deportation, it is a confirmation that the government has the ability to deport him based on charges brought against him by the Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Unit of the US Department of Homeland Security.

The High Administrative Court of Egypt ruled Feb. 20 that the voting system used in the recent parliamentary election was unconstitutional. The election was held over three stages from late November to January, and its the elaborate voting system apportioned parliamentary seats between political parties and individuals, with two thirds of the seats going to political parties. Judge Magdy el-Agaty determined the ratio to be in violation of the constitution, that half of the seats should have been held for individuals. Additionally, Agaty stated that political parties should not have been permitted to field candidates for the seats reserved for individuals. During the elections the political parties reported haggled over how many candidates they would field for those seats. It is not clear whether the ruling will lead courts to invalidate the results of the elections, widely viewed as Egypt's freest vote in decades. Agaty has referred parts of the election law to the Supreme Constitutional Court for a final judgment.

The US Supreme Court on Feb. 17 blocked enforcement of a Montana Supreme Court ruling, which upheld a state law limiting the amount of money corporations can spend on campaigns, until it can consider an appeal from the corporations challenging the law. The Montana court ruling in Western Tradition Partnership, Inc. v. Montana appears to conflict with the 2010 US Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission , which struck down a regulation that prohibited corporations and unions from using their general treasury funds for "electioneering communications" aimed at supporting or opposing a political candidate. The 1912 Corrupt Practices Act upheld by the Montana Supreme Court prohibits the same activity. The plaintiffs will now have to apply for a writ of certiorari to have the case heard by the Court. If cert is granted, this case is likely to play out as an attempt to narrow the scope of, or overrule Citizens United.

The UN General Assembly voted on Feb. 16 to condemn Syria through a non-binding resolution. The resolution supports a plan advanced by the Arab League that aims to bring the situation in Syria to a close as quickly as possible by encouraging President Bashar al-Assad to step down. There were 12 votes against the resolution including Russia, China, Iran and Bolivia.

Carlos Pérez, one of four El Universo managers convicted of libel against Ecuadoran President Rafael Correa, was granted asylum by Panama on Feb. 17. El Universo is the second largest newspaper in Ecuador. Two of the four men, Cesar and Nicolas Pérez, have already fled to Miami. The announcement that Carlos Pérez had been granted asylum came after Ecuador's National Court of Justice upheld the conviction against the four El Universo managers. The men were sentenced to three years in prison each and fined $40 million in total. Correa indicated that he was surprised that Panama granted the men asylum because, in his view, they were common criminals and not persecuted political activists. He also stated that he was considering pardoning the men. El Universo officials stated they will bring an appeal to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to fight the verdict.

Human Rights Watch on Feb. 16 called for the reduction of overcrowding to improve poor prison conditions in Latin America following a prison fire in Honduras. The fire occurred two days earlier and killed more than 300 inmates while injuring dozens more. According to HRW, Honduras prisoners suffer overcrowding which leads to poor prison conditions including inadequate nutrition and sanitation, as well as the tragic result earlier this week. Americas Director at HRW, Jose Miguel Vivanco, stated, "The tragic deaths of hundreds of inmates, one of the worst incidents of its kind in the region, are ultimately the result of overcrowding and poor prison conditions, two longstanding problems in Honduras." According to local press, Honduras has 24 prisons with a total capacity of 8,000. These prisons currently hold 13,000 prisoners, well over capacity.

Amnesty International on Feb. 16 released a report ("Militias Threaten Hope for New Libya") accusing the ruling National Transitional Council (NTC) in Libya of allowing the abuse and torture of supporters of former leader Moammar Qaddafi by unofficial militias. In the report, AI alleges that supporters of Qaddafi are being unlawfully detained, tortured and even killed by militias that the NTC has failed to control. The report was compiled by AI representatives who traveled to Libya in January and February and visited 11 facilities used to detain suspected Qaddafi loyalists. AI reported that 12 detainees have been killed while in the custody of these militias and described some of the abuse: