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Was Bin Laden’s killing legal?

Was the lethal shooting of Osama Bin Laden on 2 May legal?  Not was it legal under US or Pakistani law, but was it legal under international human rights law?  Were his and others' human rights violated?  Does it really matter?

For answers to these questions I refer readers to this top-notch analysis by Sarah Joseph, Director of the Castan Centre for Human Rights Law at Monash University.

Meanwhile, fellow Australian human rights lawyer Geoffrey Robertson, calls the killing a 'summary execution' and possibly a 'cold-blooded assassination.'  He argues that bringing Bin Laden to trial would have been a more just and even a smarter move.

Comments

  1. 21 May 2011 | 10:09 pm

    […] It tends not to comment on the major human rights stories of the day — except perhaps to posit a minority view of events, such as the latest post questioning the assassination of Bin Laden. […]

  2. 21 May 2011 | 10:38 pm

    A priceless message from US satirist Bill Maher for “Christians who support killing your enemies and torture”: http://youtu.be/oOqycchC8Hc

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