One of the world's greatest cultural disputes has ended with Greece opting to take no  action to reclaim the Parthenon marbles from Britain despite receiving a 150-page report from Amal Clooney at Doughty Street chambers advising the Greek government to take the British Museum to the International court of justice. It is a 'now or never' opportunity for Greece, the report advised.  'The British adhere to international law,' Ms Clooney said.

Achilles heel

The human rights barrister, who co-authored the report with Geoffrey Robertson and Norman Palmer,  said that the  Greek government 'has never taken advantage of this Achilles heel. You must take legal action now or you may lose the opportunity to do so due to future legal obstacles.'However, the Greek government said it favoured diplomatic and political channels and not international courts where outcomes were far from assured.