A French judge has charged Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) leader Callixte Mbarushimana, according to reports Wednesday. Examining magistrate Rene Cros charged Mbarushimana with war crimes and crimes against humanity for his role in the 1994 Rwandan genocide . The charges come in response to a lawsuit filed by victims’ groups such [...]
The Supreme Court of Canada ruled 4-4-1 Wednesday that various sections of the national law regulating the use of human embryos and other aspects of reproduction fall outside the scope of Parliament’s legislative authority. In its advisory opinion , the divided court held that the power to regulate the clinics and doctors conducting fertility treatments [...]
The US Senate voted 71-26 Wednesday to ratify the so-called New START treaty between Russia and the US. The new START treaty replaces the expired Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START I treaty) , with Russia and the US each pledging to reduce their countries’ nuclear warheads by about 30 percent. Under the terms of the [...]
The US Senate and the House of Representatives on Wednesday gave final approval to a defense spending bill that includes a provision preventing Guantanamo Bay detainees from being transferred to the US for trial. The legislation would block Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and the other accused 9/11 conspirators from being tried in a US civilian court. [...]
US President Barack Obama on Wednesday signed into law a bill to repeal the military’s controversial “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy (DADT) . The Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Repeal Act of 2010 was approved in the Senate Saturday after being passed by the House of Representatives last week. At the signing ceremony, Obama said : [...]
A judge for the US District Court for the Northern District of California on Tuesday ordered the US government to pay more than $2.5 million in damages and attorney’s fees to an Islamic charity for illegally wiretapping its conversations without a warrant. Judge Vaughn Walker found in March that the National Security Agency (NSA) warrantless [...]
A UK High Court on Tuesday denied an appeal from Iraqi citizens to open a single public inquiry into allegations of abuse by members of the British Armed Forces. The Public Interest Lawyers (PIL) , the group representing a group of more than140 Iraqis, appealed to the High Court after Defence Secretary Liam Fox refused [...]
A judge for the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on Tuesday upheld the convictions of former Illinois governor George Ryan , refusing his request for early release. In September, Ryan asked Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer to vacate his prison sentence , following a recent US Supreme Court decision. In June, the Supreme [...]
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted 3-2 Tuesday in favor of new rules to allow the government to regulate Internet traffic. The so-called net neutrality rules, proposed by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski earlier this month, would prevent Internet providers from selectively blocking web access. The regulations would require transparency of Internet broadband networks to help [...]
Sudan’s Constitutional Court on Monday rejected a suit that could have postponed next month’s scheduled referendum on independence for southern Sudan but chose not to dismiss two similar suits. According to a spokesperson for the South Sudan Referendum Commission (SSRC), the court ordered the group to respond to one of the suits by December 26. [...]
