Human Rights Watch (HRW) released a report on Thursday detailing serious human rights abuses committed by Mali’s armed forces in collaboration with Russian mercenaries of the Africa Corps (formerly Wagner Group) following the withdrawal of a United Nations peacekeeping mission late last year. The report indicates that since May 2024, these forces have intentionally or [...]

US President Joe Biden granted clemency Thursday to nearly 1,500 Americans in the largest single-day use of presidential clemency powers in modern US history. The action includes sentence commutations for approximately 1,500 people who were moved to home confinement during the COVID-19 pandemic, along with pardons for 39 individuals convicted of non-violent crimes. The bulk [...]

Canadian bicycling advocacy group Cycle Toronto along with two individual cyclists, Eva Stranger-Ross and Narada Kiondo, have filed a court challenge on Wednesday against new legislation granting the Ontario government authority over the installation and removal of municipal bike lanes. The group argues that the law, Ontario Bill 212, infringes on cyclists’ rights to life [...]

Tens of thousands of civilians in northeast Syria are facing a worsening displacement crisis, according to a report that Human Rights Watch released on Wednesday.  According to the report, the humanitarian situation has deteriorated as armed conflicts have intensified, leading to significant population movements and severe shortages of essential resources such as food, water, and [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) urged Vietnam on Tuesday to repeal its new cybersecurity law, saying that it violates the rights to free speech and freedom of expression. Vietnam’s new law, set to come into effect on December 25, builds on existing legislation to impose stricter rules surrounding internet use and freedom of speech. Vietnam’s current [...]

An explosion in Afghanistan’s capital Kabul on Wednesday resulted in the death of Khalil Rahman Haqqani, the Taliban’s acting minister for refugees and repatriation, and at least six others, the Taliban government confirmed on X. The explosion occurred within the ministry building as Haqqani was leaving after afternoon prayers, according to Haqqani’s nephew Anas Haqqani. Taliban spokesman [...]

The UK government on Wednesday placed an indefinite ban on puberty blockers for children under 18 years of age following the advice of a requested consultation by medical experts. An emergency prohibition on puberty blockers is currently in place and will expire on December 31. The emergency ban will be replaced with The Medicines (Gonadotrophin-Releasing [...]

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) declared on Wednesday that Sudan is currently experiencing the worst humanitarian crisis ever recorded. The report highlights that approximately 30.4 million people — over half of Sudan’s population — are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance, a staggering figure that accounts for 10 percent of all people globally requiring aid, [...]

According to a report released Tuesday by a government watchdog, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) covertly obtained phone records from two members of Congress and 43 congressional staffers, possibly including Kash Patel, president-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for FBI director. The records were obtained during wide-ranging leak investigations conducted during Trump’s first term. The report, issued [...]

Zambia’s Constitutional Court ruled on Tuesday that former President Edgar Lungu is ineligible to run for another term in office. The decision follows Lungu’s announcement of his return to active politics last year, sparking debate over his eligibility under Zambia’s constitutional term limits. The court found that Lungu, president from 2015 to 2021, had already [...]