A delegation of Algerian officials made the country's first visit to the US military prison camp at Guantanamo Bay in mid-March to evaluate the conditions of 26 Algerian citizens being held there, according to a report published Tuesday in Algeria's El Watan newspaper. Representatives of the Algerian ministries of defense, foreign affairs and justice made [...]
A federal judge Tuesday dismissed three counts against former Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling and one count against company founder Kenneth Lay , shortly after the prosecution rested in the fraud and conspiracy case against the pair. According to Skilling's attorney, US District Judge Sim Lake dismissed one count of wire fraud and two counts of [...]
Transit workers, postal staff, teachers and media employees went on strike and more than a million people demonstrated across France Tuesday as part of escalating protests against the First Employment Contract (CPE) , a contentious labor law passed by the French parliament earlier this month that allows employers to fire workers under 26 years old [...]
The Mississippi Legislature failed to reach a compromise on an abortion ban bill before a Monday night deadline, preventing it from becoming law during the current legislative session. The proposed bill would have prohibited most abortions in the state, making exceptions only for victims of rape or incest, or to save the woman's life; Governor [...]
The Chinese Ministry of Health announced Tuesday that it will ban the sale of human organs in an effort to stem a rising black market trade for organs of executed prisoners. The Ministry announced stricter regulations taking effect July 1 that will require written consent from organ donors and will limit the number of hospitals [...]
US House International Relations Committee chairman Rep. Henry Hyde indicated Monday that he would support a revised version of the UN Reform Act in an attempt to gain Senate support for the legislation. Hyde said he would work with committee member Rep. Tom Lantos on a bill that would tie US funding for the UN [...]
The New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) on Monday asked the US Second Circuit Court of Appeals to declassify a district judge's ruling on possible warrantless wiretaps used by the government in a high-profile terrorism case. Earlier this month, District Judge Thomas J. McAvoy issued a secret ruling in which he rejected a defense motion [...]
Nikolai Lozovik, Secretary for the Belarus Central Election Commission , announced Tuesday that the third-term inauguration of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko will be delayed. Lukashenko's landslide reelection earlier this month triggered claims of widespread fraud and prompted massive street protests along with scathing criticism from the European Union and the United States . Lozovik gave [...]
Louisiana Attorney General Charles Foti, Jr. Monday announced an investigation into the American Red Cross over accusations that some of its volunteers stole money from Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. Foti reportedly opened the investigation after Red Cross officials told Congress that it was reviewing reports of theft. Foti has asked for information from the organization [...]
Mexican President Vicente Fox has lauded Monday's approval by the US Senate Judiciary Committee of an immigration bill that would provide temporary work visas to undocumented workers in the US and that rejected a House proposal to make the "unlawful presence" of undocumented aliens a felony rather than a misdemeanor. Fox credited huge marches by [...]
