The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said Monday that it would send a team of investigators to Iraq to study the circumstances surrounding a September shooting incident involving employees of the privately contracted security firm Blackwater USA that left 11 Iraqi civilians dead. According to the FBI, the US State Department has asked it [...]
The trial of controversial al-Dustour editor Ibrahim Eissa on charges of allegedly spreading "rumors" about the health of Egyptian President Hosny Mubarak in an August newspaper report began in Cairo Monday. Eissa chose not to appear for the beginning of his trial, but told reporters that "he whole political society feels the danger of a [...]
A new law protecting private property in China took effect Monday, after it was approved by the Chinese National People's Congress in March. Chinese lawmakers considered the bill for over 13 years and it underwent multiple drafts before legislators agreed on a final version. The law grants equal protections to both public and private property [...]
The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments Monday in Board of Education of the City of New York v. Tom F. , 06-637, in which the Court considered whether the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) allows tuition reimbursement to the parents of a disabled student when the child has not previously received special education [...]
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has confirmed its ruling that a Polish woman's rights were violated when she was denied an abortion based on medical concerns that the pregnancy may cause her to go blind. Alicja Tysiac suffered a retinal hemorrhage after delivering her child by cesarean section in November 2000. The ECHR [...]
Israel released 57 Palestinian detainees Monday in a gesture of good will toward Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas , just days before a planned peace conference sponsored by the US. Last week, the Israeli cabinet approved the release of 90 Palestinians , the remainder of whom currently remain in detention due to procedural delays. Monday's prisoner [...]
Houston oil tycoon Oscar Wyatt pleaded guilty Monday to a charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud for his involvement in the Iraq Oil-for-Food scandal . Wyatt pleaded guilty to only one of five charges against him for his alleged payment of millions of dollars in bribes in return for oil contracts in Iraq. Wyatt [...]
The US Supreme Court Monday turned back a number of cases brought before it for review, including the appeal of Yemeni Guantanamo Bay detainee Salim Ahmed Hamdan challenging the constitutionality of the military commission system. Hamdan was allegedly a driver for Osama bin Laden before his capture and incarceration at Guantanamo Bay and last year [...]
A new law criminalizing the incitement of religious hatred came into effect makes intentionally stirring up hatred against people on religious grounds punishable by a jail sentence of up to seven years. Previously, certain religious groups also deemed to be ethnic designations, such as Jews and Sikhs, received protection under laws against racial hatred; groups [...]
A Chinese dissident writer has been formally arrested in Hangzhou on charges of "inciting subversion of power," advocacy group Chinese Human Rights Defenders said Sunday. Lu Gengsong was initially detained on August 24 on suspicion of subverting state power and illegal possession of state secrets but the second charge was dropped. Human Rights in China [...]
