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The article contains a systematic survey of decisions rendered by the International Court of Justice (and its Chamber) under the presidency of Sir Robert Yewdall Jennings in three cases (Guinea Bissau v. Senegal, Gulf of Fonseca, and Denmark v. Norway) involving equitable maritime delimitation, and in one case (East Timor) settled after Sir Robert's presidency. Distinct features, which are particularly pronounced in the landmark Denmark v. Norway Judgment, are the increased consistency and degree of predictability in the complex process of applying equity in maritime delimitation, of which Sir Robert has been a strong advocate. The important procedural aspects of the case law under Sir Robert's presidency are also analyzed. These are exemplified by the role of the Court as a partner in preventive diplomacy and by the precedential permission granted a third state to intervene as a nonparty. While highlighting the two presently pending cases (Qatar/Bahrain and Cameroon v. Nigeria), the author hopes that these settlements will significantly benefit from substantial and procedural solutions endorsed by the Court during Sir Robert's presidency. Keywords equity, International Court of Justice, maritime delimitation, Sir Robert Jennings

During archaeological excavations in burial sites, sometimes stoned organic objects are found, in addition to human remains. Those objects might be of a different origin, depending on various factors influencing members of a community (i.e. diseases, trauma), which provides information about their living conditions. The St. Nicholas Church archaeological site (Libkovice, Czechia) in the 18th century horizon of the cemetery, yielded a maturus-senilis female skeleton with a stone object in the left iliac fossa. This object was an oviform cyst-like rough structure, measuring 54 mm in length, 35 mm in maximum diameter and 0.2–0.7 mm shell thickness. Within the object there were small fetal bones (long bones, i.e. femur and two tibias, two scapulas, three ribs, vertebrae and other tiny bone fragments). Methods utilized to analyze the outer and inner surface morphology of the cyst and its inside, included: X-ray, CT imaging, SEM, histological staining and EDS. The EDS analysis revealed the presence of primarily oxygen, calcium and phosphorus in bone samples, and oxygen and silicon, in stone shell. Based on the length of the femur (20.2 mm) and tibia (16 mm) shafts, the fetal age was determined as being in the 15–18 week of pregnancy. The differential diagnosis was conducted, including for the three most probable cases: fetiform teratoma (FT), fetus-in-fetu (FIF) and lithopedion. The possibility of fetiform teratoma was discounted due to the presence of an anatomically correct spine, long bones and the proportions of the find. Although the low calcium content in the shell (2.3% atom mass), the lack of skull bones and the better developed lower limbs indicate fetus-in-fetu rather than lithopedion, the analyses results are unable to conclusively identify the object under one of these two categories since there are insufficient such cases in excavation material with which to draw comparison. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The International Atomic Energy Agency generally supports the concepts of prior notification and prior informed consent regarding the transboundary shipments of radioactive substances as set forth in the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal. However, individual maritime nations are reluctant to apply such regulations to the shipment of plutonium and irradiated nuclear fuel, particularly for shipments within their own coastal waters.

The jurisprudence of the newly established International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) in Hamburg, Germany, was inaugurated by two Saint Vincent and the Grenadines v. Guinea M/V Saiga cases, which resulted from the arrest on October 28, 1997, of the oil tanker M/V Saiga, flying the Saint Vincent's flag, by Guinean Customs patrol boats off the coast of West Africa. The cases have been paralleled by proceedings in national (Guinean) courts. This article surveys the first two decisions delivered by the Tribunal in application of the respective provisions of the 1982 United Nations Law of the Sea Convention (Articles 292 and 290, respectively) and the 1997 ITLOS Rules - i.e., the M/V Saiga Judgment of December 4, 1997 (Case No. 1) concerning an innovatory procedure of prompt release of the vessel and its crew and the M/V Saiga (Provisional Measures) Order of March 11, 1998. The Order marks the incidental phase of the M/V Saiga (Merits) proceedings (Case No. 2), which are scheduled for completion by the ITLOS by mid-1999. While examining the first two instances in which the ITLOS exercised its residual compulsory jurisdiction applicable to urgent matters of prompt release and provisional measures, the author also pays special attention to the comparative practice of the International Court of Justice. The analysis justifies commending the ITLOS for inauguration of its practice by an expeditious administration of international justice and by giving an appreciable expression to the critical concern for preservation of judicial consistency. Keywords International Court of Justice, International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, prompt release of vessels, provisional measures of protection, settlement of ocean disputes