ICJ orders U.S. to halt executions of Mexicans

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued a temporary injunction against the executions of five Mexican nationals on death row in Texas. The ruling by the United Nations' highest court said that the U.S. should "take all measures necessary" to ensure that the Mexicans do not get executed.

Despite the decision Texan authorities claimed that the executions will go on as scheduled such as that of Jose Medellin on August 5^th:

"This court ruling does not change anything," said Allison Castle, a spokeswoman in Gov. Rick Perry's office. "Those who come to Texas and commit crimes will have to pay the consequences"…

"(Mexico) hopes for proper enforcement of the injunction because of its legally binding nature," the country's Foreign Affairs Minister Patricia Espinosa Cantellano said in a statement written in Spanish.

The ICJ’s decision was the latest in a five-year dispute between the U.S. and its southern neighbor with Mexico arguing that nationals on death row have been denied their right to consular access.

The international court’s ruling contradicts the U.S. Supreme Court who ruled in March that states did not have to abide by a previous ICJ ruling in favor of Mexicans waiting execution.

Image- Javno

Sources- Voice of America, TheMonitor.com, El Paso Times, The Latin Americanist, CBC.ca