US Secretary of State Antony Blinken condemned the actions of Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko Sunday in detaining opposition journalist Roman Protasevich. Lukashenko’s security forces allegedly reported a false bomb threat on a Ryanair flight from Athens, Greece, to Vilnius, Lithuania. The flight was forced to redirect outside of EU airspace to Minsk, where Belarusian security [...]
The US Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal Monday from a death row inmate who sought to have his sentence carried out by firing squad because he believes it would be less painful than the state’s preferred method of execution. Ernest Johnson, a death row inmate in Missouri, suffers from epilepsy as a result [...]
Aung San Suu Kyi, Myanmar’s ousted State Counsellor, attended court on Monday for the first time since the military junta overthrew the democratically elected government in early February. Monday’s hearing was also her first public appearance since the coup d’état. Suu Kyi’s court attendance was a big step as all of her previous attendances have [...]
New Zealand is rolling out a community-focused justice model in its District Courts, one of four major courts in the mainstream hierarchy, according to a statement from the Chief District Court Judge Heemi Taumaunu published Sunday. The model is known as the Te Ao Mārama model, meaning “the enlightened world.” The model “signals a deliberate [...]
In a statement released Friday by the office of the Attorney General, the Ethiopian government confirmed that three of its soldiers have been convicted and sentenced for rape and one for killing a civilian in connection with the conflict in the Tigray region. The statement outlines the steps taken and progress made by the Ethiopian [...]
US Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas announced Saturday an 18-month designation of Haiti for Temporary Protected Status (TPS). This humanitarian protection would allow an estimated 100,000 individuals to apply to remain lawfully in the US. There are three statutory grounds for TPS designation: ongoing armed conflict, environmental disasters, or extraordinary and temporary conditions. In Haiti, [...]
The Spanish National Court decided Thursday to investigate several charges against Polisario leader Brahim Ghali, including various crimes against humanity such as genocide, terrorism, and torture. However, Judge Santiago Pedraz denied requests to arrest Ghali. Brahim Ghali entered Spain last month with a false passport and fake identity. After Ghali sought medical care for COVID-19, [...]
Judge Brian Amero of Fulton County, Georgia, granted the request of an independent group of election watchers “to inspect and scan the November 3, 2020, general election absentee ballots that are sealed.” The group, called VOTER GA, is led by Garland Favorito and describes themselves as an “anti-fraud” group. Though the recounting of the ballots [...]
The Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) of Ukraine adopted amendments regarding international crime and humanitarian laws on Thursday. The new law, Bill 2689, will help provide legal accountability for war crimes committed in the occupied territory of Crimea. The bill passed with 248 members out of 363 voting in favor of adoption. The bill amended provisions of [...]
Judge James Boasberg of the US District Court for the District of Columbia denied a request Friday for an injunction to shut down the Dakota Access Pipeline, ordering the parties to file a joint status report on how to proceed. Judge Boasberg said that the plaintiff, the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, failed to show that [...]