The National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), the Tuareg rebel army which has seized control of Mali's north, declared the independence April 6 of what it called the Azawad nation. "We, the people of the Azawad," the statement reads, "proclaim the irrevocable independence of the state of the Azawad starting from this day..." The military chiefs of 13 of Mali's neighbors met one day earlier in Ivory Coast to hash out plans for a military intervention to push back the MNLA. France said it will offer logistical support for the intervention. The European Union followed Paris' lead in announcing it will not recognize the new state. The intervention pact comes with a move to recognize Mali's besieged military junta. The junta and the West African bloc ECOWAS announced a deal that includes the lifting of sanctions and an amnesty for those involved in last month's coup. (AFP, April 7; AP, April 6)

The Palestinian Authority Prisoners Ministry said that Israeli prison authorities stormed the cells of Palestinian prisoners on April 1, leaving 61 injured. The raid in Israel's Nafha facility came after prisoners refused to give DNA samples, the ministry said. Minister of Prisoners Affairs Issa Qaraqe asserted that every prisoner has the right to refuse forcible DNA testing. PA lawyers have filed a complaint with Israel's Supreme Court to demand the end of forced DNA tests for Palestinians jailed by Israel. (Ma'an News Agency, April 1)

South Sudan accused Khartoum April 5 both of bombing an oil pipeline near the town of Heglig, in South Kordofan state, and of trying to build an "illegal" pipeline crossing the border towards the South's oil fields. "This is oil piracy," military spokesman Philip Aguer charged, adding that a "foreign company" was involved. South Sudan also said it had shot down a Sudanese MiG-29 aircraft over South Sudan's oil-producing Unity state. The claims were denied by Khartoum. Heglig was taken by South Sudanese forces late last month, with the South's Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), saying it was responding to incursions by Khartoum's Sudan Armed Forces (SAF). (Reuters, AlJazeera, April 5; Sudan Tribune, March 28)

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.

On April 2 the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) released the last members of the security forces they were holding captive—a group of 10, who have been held for more than 12 years. They were handed over in a joint operation orchestrated by the Colombian and Brazilian governments, the Red Cross, and activist group Colombians for Peace. The men were picked up in a Brazilian military helicopter, and taken from the jungle to the city of Villavicencio, Meta department, where they were reunited with relatives, appearing before TV cameras waving Colombian flags and punching the air. Afterwards they were flown to Bogotá, where President Juan Manuel Santos gave a speech welcoming their return.

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: