The interim government of Bangladesh has completed all formalities necessary to separate the country's judiciary from its executive branch, meeting a deadline set by the Supreme Court of Bangladesh last month, according to Monday media reports. Mainul Hosein, law adviser in the interim government, said that the Bangladeshi Supreme Court will now set a date [...]
The Turkish parliament failed to elect a president Monday, with the leading candidate receiving only 341 votes. Current Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul was 26 votes shy of the number necessary to win the seat; the Turkish president is elected by a two-thirds majority of parliamentarians in the first round of voting. The main opposition [...]
Ugandan Minister of Internal Affairs Ruhakana Rugunda told the BBC Monday that Uganda has begun the process of consulting with victims to determine the best way to hold accountable those responsible for atrocities committed during Uganda's civil war . Rugunda said that the government is considering establishing a war crimes court or local courts reflecting [...]
US military prosecutors have dropped charges of making false official statements and obstructing justice against US Army Lt. Col. Steven L. Jordan just hours before jury selection was set to begin in his court-martial. Jordan is the only commissioned officer charged in connection with the Abu Ghraib prison abuse scandal , and now faces charges [...]
A Jordanian government spokesperson said Monday that Jordan does not currently have plans to hand over Raghad Saddam Hussein, daughter of the former Iraqi leader, even though Interpol issued a "red notice" last week indicating that Iraqi authorities are seeking her arrest. Raghad has lived in Jordan since 2003, and Iraq asked the Jordanian government [...]
The Special Court for Sierra Leone on Monday delayed the trial of former Liberian President Charles Taylor until January 7, 2008 in order to provide Taylor's new defense team more time to prepare. The trial had been scheduled to resume Monday, but the court said last week that it would allow a postponement and instead [...]
Ethiopian officials have released 31 opposition activists from custody after the members of the Coalition for Unity and Democracy reportedly apologized for their roles in mass anti-government demonstrations that followed Ethiopia's contested 2005 elections. The 31 CUD members were never charged with any crime, but were released Saturday after Ethiopia's Board of Pardon reviewed their [...]
The American Psychological Association (APA) voted Sunday against a measure that would have prevented its members from participating in the interrogations of terror suspects at Guantanamo Bay and other military prisons where suspects have been tortured. The APA instead passed a resolution stating that the association opposes the use of torture and specifying what practices [...]
Roughly 70 percent of voters casting ballots in Thailand Sunday approved the interim military-supported government's proposed new constitution , which will replace the country's 1997 charter. Interim Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont , who came to power after last September's military coup , had urged voters to participate in the referendum, calling it a way for [...]
A judge on the secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) court said in an order released Friday that the court would consider what she called an "unprecedented" ACLU motion to release to the public hitherto-classified rulings on the extent of the US government's wiretapping authority. Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly directed the government to file a response [...]
