http://www.law.com/jsp/law/international/index.jsp en-us 05/16/2012 Copyright 2008 incisivemedia. All rights reserved. http://www.law.com/service/terms_conditions.shtml http://www.law.com/img/law/international/international_rss.gif http://www.law.com/jsp/law/international/index.jsp Thirteen natives of Somalia and Yemen are on trial in federal court, accused of smuggling millions of dollars worth of khat, which is popular in their homelands but illegal in the United States. http://www.law.com/jsp/law/international/LawArticleIntl.jsp?id=1202549451041 2012-04-19 00:00:00 Middle East real estate company Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Co. has appointed 13 law firms its first-ever legal panel, with a raft of U.K. firms winning roles, including Norton Rose, Allen & Overy and Ashurst, as well as U.S. firm Latham & Watkins. Qatari Diar's roughly 49 projects in 29 countries have a combined value of about $35 billion. http://www.law.com/jsp/law/international/LawArticleIntl.jsp?id=1202546636510 2012-03-23 00:00:00 Egypt has lifted a travel ban on seven Americans charged with fomenting unrest by working for illegally funded pro-democracy groups, signaling an end to a crisis between the two countries. http://www.law.com/jsp/law/international/LawArticleIntl.jsp?id=1202544024613 2012-03-01 00:00:00 Marine Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich, who led a squad that shot 24 unarmed Iraqis in 2005, has avoided prison time for the killings, instead winning leniency through a plea deal that carries no real punishment beyond a reduction in rank. It was a stunning outcome in a case once compared with the My Lai massacre in Vietnam. http://www.law.com/jsp/law/international/LawArticleIntl.jsp?id=1202539831823 2012-01-25 00:00:00 Simmons & Simmons, whose Middle East offices saw a number of high-profile exits last year, is set to cut lawyers and support staff in its Abu Dhabi and Dubai offices, due to tough market conditions. Several other law firms have recently cut back their own Middle East operations as a result of difficult trading conditions. http://www.law.com/jsp/law/international/LawArticleIntl.jsp?id=1202539715385 2012-01-24 00:00:00 Hogan Lovells has launched an Israel Regional Practice Development Team to augment and coordinate the legal services it provides to companies that do business or are looking to do business in that country, which the firm views as a growth opportunity. http://www.law.com/jsp/law/international/LawArticleIntl.jsp?id=1202538117858 2012-01-12 00:00:00 Shyima Hall was 9 years old when her parents sold her to a wealthy Egyptian couple, who later moved to California, bringing Hall along to do all the chores for the couple and their five children. Eventually freed, Hall is now 22, and with the help of Seyfarth Shaw partner Angelo Paparelli, she became a naturalized citizen last month. http://www.law.com/jsp/law/international/LawArticleIntl.jsp?id=1202537528563 2012-01-06 00:00:00 An Egyptian court on Tuesday ordered the country's military rulers to stop the use of "virginity tests" on female detainees, in a rare condemnation by a civilian tribunal of a military practice that has caused an uproar among activists and rights groups. http://www.law.com/jsp/law/international/LawArticleIntl.jsp?id=1202536798885 2011-12-28 00:00:00 A U.S. government contractor that provides security guards at military bases and other sites in Iraq and Afghanistan has been sued for failing to pay overtime wages and give meal and rest breaks to its employees. The suit seeks back wages and compensation for missed breaks on behalf of 300 to 400 armed guards employed in Iraq by Nevada-based SOC. http://www.law.com/jsp/law/international/LawArticleIntl.jsp?id=1202536688137 2011-12-27 00:00:00 Having moved into Baghdad in 2003, leading Middle East law firm Al Tamimi & Co. is now poised to venture into another war-torn country: Libya. A senior Al Tamimi source said the firm has already applied for a license to open a Tripoli office in early 2012 that would be staffed exclusively by local lawyers. http://www.law.com/jsp/law/international/LawArticleIntl.jsp?id=1202534985087 2011-12-09 00:00:00