International election observers said Monday that this weekend's elections in Belarus , which secured a third term for Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko , were "severely flawed" and failed to meet democratic standards. Lukashenko, whom the Bush administration has referred to as "the last dictator in Europe" was credited with 82.6 percent of the vote, citing [...]

In the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks , US government lawyers discussed ways to search the homes and businesses of suspected terrorists without court approval at the same time they debated warrantless electronic surveillance , according to a report in the current issue of US News & World Report. A January 19, 2006 [...]

The last annual meeting of the UN Commission on Human Rights in Geneva was delayed again Monday as the body waits for a procedural vote by the UN Economic and Social Council in order to proceed. The Commission met for only a few minutes when the chairman announced that the ECOSOC vote on substantive elements [...]

The sentencing trial of Zacarias Moussaoui will resume on Monday after being stayed last week to allow for investigation of misconduct by Transportation Security Administration lawyer Carla Martin. Defense attorneys are set to cross-examine FBI Agent Harry Samit, who has testified that Moussaoui's lies after his August 2001 arrest prevented the government from taking steps [...]

Philippine Defense Secretary Avelino Cruz said Monday that the country's military would not go on a "witch hunt" as it investigates the involvement of army soldiers in last month's failed coup attempt against Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo . Cruz did indicate, however, that it was necessary for the army to cleanse its forces of violators [...]

UK Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs Lord Falconer has suggested that new laws should be enacted requiring loans to political parties to be publicly disclosed. In letters to all UK political parties, Lord Falconer has proposed that a ban on secret party loans be included in the Electoral Administration Bill which [...]

Thousands of opposition supporters rallied in Minsk Sunday to protest what they claimed were the rigged results of the Belarus presidential election, defying threats of a government crackdown. Current president Alexander Lukashenko , who has ruled for 12 years, is expected to win his third five-year term by a landslide, and early exit polls suggest [...]

The French government again defended its recently passed First Employment Contract (CPE) labor law Sunday, a day after mass protests against the legislation were held in Paris and other major French cities. The law allows French employers to hire workers under the age of 26 for a conditional two-year period during which they can be [...]

The latest effort to put former Liberian President Charles Taylor on trial for crimes against humanity at the Special Court for Sierra Leone should be seen as a warning to the "world's warlords that they cannot escape justice," said Special Court Chief Prosecutor Desmond de Silva in an interview with Reuters Sunday. De Silva said [...]

The US Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee says it will approve legislation by mid-May to open Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) to oil drilling . The statement comes in response to a budget bill passed last week in the Senate which requires the committee to come up with legislation that will raise $6 [...]