The Obama administration sent a formal report to Congress criticizing the Egyptian government for its human rights abuses and lack of movement toward democracy but still supporting sending $1.3 billion to Egypt in mostly military aid. The report, signed by Secretary of State John Kerry and submitted quietly on May 12, condemned Egypt’s due process [...]
The hostilities in Afghanistan are leading to the killing and wounding of thousands and the forced relocation of families into neighboring countries, according to Mark Bowden , the UN Secretary-General’s Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan, in statements made on Monday. While addressing the Second Independent Media and Civil Society Forum in Kabul, Bowden stated that [...]
The US Supreme Court granted certiorari in three cases Monday. In Shapiro v. Mack the court will hear a challenge to the Three Judge Court Act , which requires the convening of a three-judge district court to decide certain important lawsuits such as those concerning voter redistricting. The court ruled in Goosby v. Osser (1973) [...]
Burundi opposition leader Agathon Rwasa on Saturday said that a presidential election must be held by August so that a newly elected government is in place by the time current president Pierre Nkurunziza’s term ends August 26. Currently there is an election planned for June 26, but the likelihood of it taking place has greatly [...]
A British warship sailing in the Mediterranean Sea launched a mission on Sunday to rescue over 500 migrants stranded at sea, the Ministry of Defense (MoD) said in a statement. A Royal Navy helicopter has found four migrant vessels in need of assistance so far. It was also reported by the Migrant Offshore Aid Station [...]
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Saturday invited Yemen President Abd Rabou Mansour Hadi to send a delegation to the UN sponsored Yemen consultation set to begin in Geneva on June 14th. The Secretary General has called on all parties to participate in good faith and without an preconceived notions for the interest of all [...]
A Saudi court on Sunday upheld blogger Raif Badawi’s sentence of 10 years in prison and 1,000 lashes for “insulting Islam through electronic channels.” The blogger ran The Liberal Saudi Network for 4 years before being arrested by Saudi authorities. Badawi was originally charged with insulting Islam for co-founding the religious discussion website Free Saudi [...]
The Louisiana House of Representatives approved a medical marijuana bill on Thursday and sent the bill as amended back to the Senate for concurrence. The Senate previously approved the bill that seeks to provide a legal way to supply therapeutic marijuana to patients who need it in May. The current system allows doctors to prescribe [...]
Pakistani police on Friday announced that eight of the ten men charged with the 2012 attack of teenage education activist Malala Yousafzai were acquitted of all charges by an anti-terrorism court in April. This information is a correction of the reported conviction of all ten militants to life in prison for their involvement in the [...]
Kenyan police on Thursday charged five men in connection with the attack on Garissa University by al-Shabaab militants in April. The attack by Somali Islamist gunmen killed 148 students, making it the nation’s worst militant attack in nearly 20 years. While the four gunmen involved in the attack were killed by police who responded to [...]
