The Supreme Court of the Philippines on Friday unanimously upheld the constitutionality of the controversial Human Security Act (HSA) 2007 , ruling the petitioners lacked legal standing to challenge the law because it had not caused them any actual damage. In its decision, the court noted that law enforcement officers’ reluctance to enforce the law [...]
Two Greek police officers accused in the shooting death of 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos , which sparked violent demonstrations and riots in 2008, were found guilty Monday and sentenced to prison. A panel of judges and jurors found Officer Epameinonta Korkonea guilty of intentional murder and sentenced him to a term of life imprisonment plus 15 [...]
An Iraqi court on Sunday acquitted two men accused of killing six British soldiers in Basra in 2003. The court ruled that it had insufficient evidence to prosecute Hamza Hateer and Mussa Ismael al-Fartusi for their participation in the “Red Cap murders” . The incident involved a mob of 400 people attacking a police station [...]
The Israeli Cabinet approved an amendment Sunday to the country’s Citizenship law that would require those seeking citizenship to pledge allegiance to Israel as a “Jewish and democratic state” and promise “to honor the laws of the state.” The amendment was approved by a vote of 22-8. Defense Minister Ehud Barak submitted a proposal that [...]
Representatives from the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) appeared before the UN General Assembly (UNGA) on Friday to request additional financial resources and institutional support on behalf of the various war crimes tribunals. The ICTY and the ICTR, founded by the UN in early [...]
Bolivian President Evo Morales signed a controversial bill into law Friday that permits the government to punish media outlets for publishing racist content. Under the new law, the government can fine or even revoke the media licenses of newspapers and other media that publish content it deems to be discriminatory, particularly toward the nation’s majority [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled Wednesday that governmental interests in the protection of sensitive information supersede a detainee’s request for its disclosure. The decision overturns the district court’s earlier finding in favor of Guantanamo Bay detainee Djamel Ameziane , who claims to have been subjected to torture and [...]
Family members of Turkish activists killed during Israel’s raid of a Gaza-bound flotilla in May have sent a request to the International Criminal Court (ICC) for a formal investigation into the incident. The families submitted the request on behalf of nine Turkish activists and one American activist who were killed during the raid on the [...]
The Supreme Court of Canada ruled 5-4 Friday that Canadians do not have the right to have counsel present during custodial interrogations. The court held that § 10(b) of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms , which states that those under arrest have the right “to retain and instruct counsel without delay and to be [...]
Accused Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout on Friday filed an appeal challenging the Bangkok Criminal Court’s decision to dismiss money laundering and fraud charges against him, which removed obstacles to his US extradition. According to Bout’s lawyer Lak Nitiwatanavichan, the arms dealer is now seeking to have these charges reinstated to avoid extradition to the [...]
