An Egyptian military court on Thursday reduced the sentence of a blogger charged with criticizing the military. The court reduced the three-year sentence of blogger Maikel Nabil to two years. Nabil was convicted and sentenced to prison in April for criticizing the Egyptian army and raising questions over reform in the wake of revolution. The [...]
The White House on Wednesday announced that President Barack Obama no longer intends to veto the National Defense Authorization Act for 2012 . The about face comes after revisions by lawmakers that address the concerns of the Obama administration related to the treatment of terror suspects. The administration had threatened to veto the legislation because [...]
Algerian lawmakers on Wednesday approved a controversial new media law that critics say will impede freedom of expression. The law restricts journalists from undermining Algeria’s sovereignty, national identity, economy and security, providing for fines up to USD $3,900 and jail time. The law has been criticized for being vague and overbroad by groups such as [...]
A French court on Thursday convicted former president Jacques Chirac on corruption charges, handing him a two-year suspended sentence. The charges stem from his time as mayor of the city of Paris and accused him of using public funds to support his political ambitions. In September, the prosecution asked the court to drop all charges [...]
The Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) on Wednesday reduced the sentence of Theoneste Bagosora , called the “kingpin” of the 1994 Rwandan genocide , from life to 35 years in prison. The court overturned several of his convictions but affirmed his convictions for genocide and crimes against humanity. The ICTR [...]
A judge for the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York on Tuesday revived a six-year-old lawsuit over the Plan B emergency contraceptive , but declined to hold the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in contempt. The suit was filed by the Center for Reproductive Rights in 2005 after the FDA failed [...]
US Attorney General Eric Holder pledged Tuesday to enforce civil rights during next year’s elections. Speaking at the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library & Museum in Austin, Texas, Holder stressed the importance of the right to vote, calling it the “cornerstone of our system of government.” He expressed concern over several recently enacted state laws currently [...]
JURIST Guest Columnist Shannon Gilreath of Wake Forest University School of Law says that the current litigation strategy seeking marriage rights for same-sex couples only tinkers around the edges of heteronormative institutions when it should be seeking separate institutions that reject these gender role-dominated institutions…
A Philippines senior official was arrested on Tuesday amidst allegations that he was involved in illegal activities in connection with the 2007 congressional elections on the island of Mindanao. Former chief election official, Benjamin Abalos, surrendered and was taken into custody at a courthouse in the city of Manila, but maintains his innocence. It is [...]
Alabama’s controversial new immigration law is resulting in human rights violations , Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported Wednesday. In the 52-page report , “No Way to Live: Alabama’s Immigrant Law,” HRW claims that the law is denying immigrants equal protection under the law as well as access to basic necessities such as water, electricity and [...]
