The Vestre Landsret , one of the two second-highest appeals courts in Denmark, denied Wednesday an appeal of a 2006 lower court judgment dismissing a lawsuit concerning caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad . The defamation lawsuit was brought by seven Muslim groups against Jyllands-Posten , a Danish newspaper that printed satirical cartoons depicting the Prophet [...]
Thirty-nine accused Darfur rebels appeared before special courts in Sudan to be tried under a 2001 anti-terrorism law Wednesday. The accused allegedly belong to the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) , which Sudanese officials accuse of terrorism, rebellion and conspiring against the constitution. Lawyers for the rebels have expressed skepticism that the special courts, which [...]
The US congress voted late Wednesday to override President George W. Bush's veto of the new Farm Bill . The override passed easily in both chambers, with votes of 80-14 in the Senate and 317-109 in the House. Bush had vetoed the legislation earlier Wednesday, calling it fiscally irresponsible. The original version of the text [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled Wednesday that employees have a reasonable expectation of privacy in text messages sent on work cell phones. The present case was bought by an Ontario police officer who alleged that his department violated his Fourth Amendment rights by reading his messages; the officer also brought [...]
South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu said Wednesday that the US Senate should quickly pass a proposed bill designed to combat AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria because it would save lives and encourage other governments to increase their anti-AIDS efforts. The bill would directly support other countries' anti-AIDS efforts and is designed to: provide a framework to [...]
The US Supreme Court handed down five decisions Thursday, including MetLife v. Glenn , in which the Court ruled 6-3 that an employee benefit plan administrator has an illegal conflict of interest under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act if he has both the authority to pay benefits and to determine employees' eligibility for benefits. [...]
Mexico has asked the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for assistance in stopping the Texas executions of five of its citizens, including Jose Ernesto Medellin , who is scheduled to be executed August 5. In hearings scheduled for Thursday, Mexico will ask the ICJ to rule on its request for provisional measures and to clarify [...]
The Swedish parliament Wednesday passed a controversial warrantless wiretapping law that gives the country's National Defence Radio Establishment broad authority to monitor international telephone and electronic communications passing through the country. The bill, which had been rejected Tuesday , passed by a narrow 143-138 margin after last-minute changes made by lawmakers. The changes included a [...]
The status of more than 1,000 protesters detained by Chinese authorities during March demonstrations in Tibet remains unknown, according to an Amnesty International report released Wednesday. About 370 of the protesters who surrendered to authorities and about 980 arrested in April after the protests have still not been released or charged . Amnesty officials also [...]
Canada classified the World Tamil Movement (WTM) as a terrorist organization Tuesday , according to comments by Canadian Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day . Day characterized the group as a front for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) , or "Tamil Tigers," stating that there was evidence linking the WTM to LTTE fund raising [...]
