Slavery in the Ethiopian region is of “great antiquity.” (Pankhurst, 1964, p. 202.) Historical inscriptions going as far back as 1495 B.C. point to the subjugation of people from the Land of Punt into slavery. (Encyclopedia Aethiopica, p. 673.) There are also sources indicating the export of slaves from the Aksumite Kingdom (100–940 AD), a …
The recent release of the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit has forced Israelis to reflect again on the cost of releasing kidnapped soldiers. Shalit was abducted by the military wing of Hamas from inside Israel’s borders in June 2006 and had been held captive for over five years. Israel agreed to release 1,027 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the …
In a recent pic of the week we featured a group shot of the 18th Annual Global Legal Information Network (GLIN) Directors’ Meeting. Today, I’d like to share some of the highlights of the event. During the two-day meeting, which took place at the Library of Congress in the Lawrence Quincy Mumford Room, representatives from …
This week’s interview is with Dr. Mary-Jane Deeb, Chief of the African and Middle Eastern Division at the Library of Congress. Describe your background My background is a bit complicated: my mother was Slovenian and my father was a Levantine from Egypt. I grew up in Alexandria, Egypt, spoke French at home, and went to …
This week’s interview is with George Sadek, Senior Legal Information Analyst for the Global Legal Information Network (GLIN). George is no stranger to In Custodia Legis, having written three guest posts for us. Describe your background. I was born in Egypt and immigrated to the United States in 1999. I have worked in the field …
Today, Eritrea, Africa’s youngest nation (at least until next month, when South Sudan is expected to declare its formal independence), celebrates its 20th Independence Day. Eritrea, like all of its African brethren, is a colonial creation. Although Turkey, Egypt, and the local Ethiopian rulers controlled different parts of what later became Eritrea at different times, …
February seems to have rushed by. We continued to have several guest posts for In Custodia Legis this month. They included Thirty Years Ago – The Big Move, Legal Half Time Entertainment, The Legal Ramifications of the Current Political Crisis in Egypt, and The History of the Mexican Constitution. The guest post on Egypt was …