AlHijjah 13, 1434, Oct 18, 2013, SPA -- The International Court of Justice concluded public hearings yesterday over the construction of two canals along the San Juan River near the border between Costa Rica and Nicaragua. Costa Rica went to the UN's highest court seeking a temporary halt to the construction of the canals. Nicaragua is on the other side of the long-running border dispute. Its representative at the court, Carlos Arguello, told television station Channel 4 there were no grounds for a temporary restraining order, and that he was confident the court would reject Costa Rica's argument. Costa Rica's representative, Edgar Ugalde, said at the conclusion of the public hearings that he was satisfied with the proceedings, newspaper La Nacion quoted him as saying. Nicaragua is also seeking a restraining order against Costa Rica, saying the construction of a 160-kilometre-long street along the San Juan River violates an earlier ruling of the court. The International Court of Justice will consider that case in November.
