Ieng Thirith , the sister-in-law of Pol Pot considered the “first lady” of the Khmer Rouge, died Saturday at the age of 83. Ieng Thirith was Minister of Social Action during Democratic Kampuchea between 1975 and 1979. From late 2011 to 2012 Ieng Thirith, her husband and Khmer Rouge foreign minister Ieng Sary, and other [...]
An Egyptian criminal court on Saturday sentenced Mohamed Badie and 88 other Muslim Brotherhood members to life imprisonment for their role in a 2013 attack on a police station. First reported by Middle East News Agency (MENA), Egypt’s state-run news agency, most defendants were tried and sentenced in absentia for the killing of five people [...]
A UN human rights expert called Thursday on the Chinese government and relevant businesses to ensure transparency in the investigation of a chemical disaster in Tianjin, including both the causes and effects of the explosion. “The Chinese authorities should also assess whether China’s laws for hazardous substances and wastes are consistent with international human rights [...]
Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner signed the Youth Mental Health Protection Act into law on Thursday prohibiting licensed therapists from attempting to change the sexual orientation of anyone under 18 years of age. State Senator Daniel Biss , one of the sponsors of the legislation, released a statement on Friday calling the bill an important step [...]
Senegal’s highest court on Thursday upheld a graft conviction and six-year prison term against Karim Wade, the son of former president Abdoulaye Wade . Karim Wade, who had several portfolios within his father’s government and presidential ambitions of his own, was convicted in March for amassing a personal fortune with public funds. The supreme court [...]
An independent UN human rights expert on Friday commended Mauritania for adopting a new law that establishes harsher sentences for slavery crimes, urging full implementation. The law adopted last week by the Mauritanian National Assembly doubles prison terms for slavery convictions, declared slavery a crime against humanity, and created tribunals to handle slavery prosecution cases. [...]
A group of UN human rights experts on Thursday condemned an Azerbaijan court for the convictions of prominent human rights activists Leyla and Arif Yunus. The experts called the convictions “politically motivated and representative of the continuing repression of independent civil society in Azerbaijan.” The court sentenced Leyla Yunus on August 13 to eight-and-a-half years [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit on Thursday denied a request by former Virginia governor Bob McDonnell to remain out of prison while he appeals his corruption conviction to the US Supreme Court . With this ruling , McDonnell will most likely have to report to prison to begin serving his two-year [...]
Former Iranian prosecutor Saeed Mortazavi was acquitted Wednesday of murder charges relating to the 2009 killing of three prisoners which he oversaw. The prisoners were detained in 2009 for protesting against former President Mahmous Ahmedinejad’s disputed re-election – an issue that drew significant global criticism aimed not only at Iran’s government, but also the treatment [...]
Tianjin Mayor Huang Xingguo said Wednesday that the owners of the hazmat facility that exploded in the city last week used their political connections get the facility built despite violating a great deal of safety rules. One rule barred storage of hazardous chemicals within 3,200 feet of residential areas, much farther than the facility was [...]
