Rached Ghannouchi, the Tunisian opposition leader and head of the Ennahda main opposition party, commenced a hunger strike on Monday in solidarity with other anti-government figures. Ghannouchi, aged 82, has been incarcerated since last year on charges of incitement against police and plotting against state security. His recent conviction in a separate case, resulting in [...]
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The India Supreme Court unanimously declared unconstitutional the electoral bonds scheme on Wednesday, which previously allowed for anonymous funding to political parties. The electoral bonds scheme was first instituted by India Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Union government in 2018. It allowed both individuals and corporations to anonymously fund political parties by purchasing electoral bonds from the [...]
France appeals court lightens prison sentence for former President Sarkozy
The Paris court of appeal lightened a one-year prison sentence for former French President Nicolas Sarkozy. Sarkozy was facing charges over alleged illegal campaign financing in his 2012 re-election campaign. The court also on affirmed a lower court’s guilty verdict. Vincent Desry, the former president’s attorney, claimed in a press interview Wednesday that Sarkozy was [...]
German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser announced Tuesday that a package of new measures will be considered to tackle the rise of far-right extremism. These new measures are part of a 13-point plan and are both preventive and repressive. They include the financial tracking of right-wing extremist groups in addition to the creation of a special unit [...]
Russia announced new sanctions against 18 British nationals in response to the UK’s “confrontational policies” against the country on Monday. However, the statement did not mention which particular policy the sanctions are responding to. The sanctions were made against not only the UK’s government officials but also scholars. These newly sanctioned individuals will be denied [...]
Colombia and National Liberation Army extend bilateral ceasefire for six months
The Colombian government and the rebel National Liberation Army (ELN) Tuesday agreed to extend their landmark truce for 180 days. The truce, called the Bilateral, National and Temporary Ceasefire, was previously extended by one week on January 30 2024, while each side continued ongoing peace talks. In addition to the extension, the peace process is [...]
The US and the EU issued statements on Saturday and Friday highlighting their concerns over the Kosovo government’s recent actions in relation to the raiding of Serbian-run organisations, as well as the banning of Serbian currency. The US Ambassador to Kosovo, Jeffrey M. Hovenier, said that the US government was “deeply concerned about recent actions [...]
Poland president sends 2024 budget to the Constitutional Court for assessment
Polish President Andrzej Duda sent the 2024 budget to the Constitutional Court on Wednesday in the post-control mode to check its compliance with Poland’s Constitution. This decision was made due to doubts about the correctness of the adoption procedure, as two members of Parliament were unable to participate in the Sejm’s work on these acts. [...]
ICJ mostly rejects Ukraine claims of Russia discrimination, terrorism financing
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) found Wednesday that Russia failed to investigate Ukrainian claims that Russians were financing terrorism in Ukraine, in violation of Russia’s obligations under Article 9 of the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism (ICSFT). The ruling’s press release states that the ICJ otherwise rejected requests by [...]
Malaysia's former finance minister charged under anti-corruption act
Malaysia’s former finance minister, Tun Abdul Daim bin Zainuddin, was charged Monday for failing to comply with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) order to declare his assets. Zainuddin, along with his wife and two children, were requested in January 2024 to testify about “high-value assets” that are under their company’s name within and outside the country. Zainuddin, [...]