Date Type 30/07/2015 JAL 30/07/2015 AL Case No Country Mandate(s) Summary of the allegation transmitted Reply IRQ 3/2015 Iraq Independence of judges and lawyers; Summary executions; Allegations concerning the arrest and detention of four lawyers, and the summary execution of one of them, for discharging their professional duties. According to the information received, Mr. Mouayad Obeed al-Ezzi, Mr. Ziad Ghanem Shaaban al-Naseri, Mr. Salah Khabbas al-Obeidi and Mr. Badee Aref Izzat were arrested, temporarily detained and interrogated, and Mr. Al-Obeidi, killed, between November 2011 and March 2014, in relation to the discharge of their professional functions as lawyers defending individuals in politically sensitive cases. With regard to the case of Mr. Al-Obeidi, who was killed by an unidentified armed group on 24 March 2013, it is reported that no investigation has been carried out to date to identify the perpetrators and bring them to justice. Concern is expressed that these cases may show a possible pattern of intimidation and harassment of lawyers who take up politically sensitive cases. ISR 5/2015 Israel Discrimination against women; 07/10/2015 Letter concerning discriminatory provisions against women in relation to marital status in personal laws and practices applicable in Israel. According to the information received, under Article 51(a) of the British Mandatory Law of 1922, which is still in force today, all recognized religious communities in Israel have their own religious legal courts. The Rabbinical Courts Jurisdiction (Marriage and Divorce) Law 5713-1953 cedes jurisdiction over marriage and divorce of Jewish women to the rabbinical courts which adjudicate in accordance with religious Jewish law, which discriminates against women in various ways. Most importantly, refusal of a husband to divorce his wife, whatever the grounds she has for filing a divorce, deprives a woman of any way of obtaining such a divorce and remarrying. These incapacities are not symmetrically imposed on men whose wives refuse to accept a divorce. The Shari’a courts, which adjudicate in accordance with Muslim religious law, discriminate against women as regards ease of divorce for women as compared with men, including possible deprivation of the custody of children after widowhood or divorce if the woman remarries. A/HRC/31/79 61