The Constitutional Court of Italy Wednesday ruled Italian children should be given the surname of both parents. It is a long-standing tradition in Italy that all newborns are automatically given their father’s surname. But in Wednesday’s decision, the court described the practice as “discriminatory and harmful to the identity” of the child. Specifically the court [...]

The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Tuesday voted to suspend Russia from the organization. The move came during an emergency session convened at the request of 6 members and at the instruction of the UNWTO’s Executive Council. The Executive Council previously debated suspending Russia in an emergency meeting last month. The UNWTO is a [...]

A new report released Tuesday warns that press freedom in Hong Kong has been almost entirely curtailed by a government crackdown, creating a space for pro-Beijing, pro-government media. The report, from UK-based advocacy group Hong Kong Watch, is based on interviews with journalists currently in exile and reports by Hong Kong press associations. The crackdown, [...]

A Singapore court Tuesday dismissed a last-ditch legal challenge by the mother of a Malaysian drug trafficker on death row, paving the way for his execution to be carried out on Wednesday as planned. Nagaenthran Dharmalingam was convicted of trafficking heroin into Singapore over a decade ago and has been on death row ever since. [...]

Derek Chauvin Monday filed in Minnesota state appeals court to overturn his third-degree murder conviction in the death of George Floyd in May 2020. Chauvin was sentenced in June 2021 to 22.5 years prison after a jury found him guilty of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in April 2021. Chauvin and his [...]

A Turkish court Monday sentenced activist Osman Kavala to a life sentence. The sentence came from an arrest in 2013 over the Gezi protests. The protest was a small demonstration in Istanbul park which later led to a nationwide anti-government protest. Originally found guilty of charges in 2013 for being a part of the protests, [...]

The New York State Court of Appeals, the state’s highest court, Wednesday invalidated electoral maps drawn by Democratic lawmakers. In a 32-page ruling, the court found that lawmakers had violated the state constitution and ordered new maps to be drawn. In 2014, New York voters approved a constitutional amendment to create a non-partisan redistricting commission. [...]

The United Nations General Assembly adopted a landmark resolution Tuesday which requires the General Assembly to meet every time a veto is used by the Security Council. The resolution has been praised by multiple officials as a great step forward for accountability within the UN. The resolution, still in its drafting stage, was first introduced [...]

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) Monday released its 2022 annual report, which noted “significant regress” in countries such as Afghanistan and the Central African Republic. As part of its report, USCIRF recommended that the US Department of State designate 15 countries as “countries of particular concern” (CPCs), as their governments are involved [...]

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Monday signed controversial legislation SB524 into law. The bill purports to “ensure that Florida continues to have secure and accurate elections,” but voting rights advocates argue the bill is unnecessary and dangerous. The bill increases penalties for violations of election laws, mandates closer attention to voting rolls, and creates an Office [...]