The Missouri Legislature passed new abortion restrictions over the veto of Governor Jay Nixon Wednesday. Under the new requirement woman in Missouri must wait 72 hours after consulting a doctor before having an abortion, and the requirement does not grant an exception for instances of rape and incest. Missouri’s previous abortion law mandated a 24-hour [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday upheld the dismissal of a consolidated lawsuit brought against various tobacco companies. The 750 consolidated individual cases included: 588 personal injury cases filed on behalf of purportedly living cigarette smokers who, as it turns out, were dead at the time of filing (a group [...]
Amnesty International (AI) on Thursday called upon Thailand’s military to end the “spiral of repression” that has been present since the military imposed martial law in May. The report, entitled “Attitude adjustment—100 days under Martial Law,” examines the human rights conditions of the country since the military seized control. The report details issues of ongoing [...]
Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Thursday accused the Israeli military of committing war crimes over the summer by attacking schools where hundreds of displaced Palestinians sought shelter. The three attacks, which took place on July 24, July 30 and August 3 , killed 45 people, including 17 children. Fred Abrahams, special adviser at HRW, stated [...]
A judge for Wisconsin’s Dane County Circuit Court on Wednesday ruled that the marriage of a lesbian couple who wed in Iowa was constitutionally valid and that such marriages must be recognized under state adoption laws, approving the couple’s adoption of their two children. The attorney for the Riley family, Michele Perreault, has expressed concern [...]
President Benigno Aquino III on Wednesday urged the Philippines Congress to enact a draft law that would create an autonomous Muslim region in the south of the country. The law is to serve an important role in the peace talks between the government and Muslim rebels, which are meant to end a conflict that has [...]
The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on Tuesday denied a Texas death row inmate’s challenge to the drugs that would be used in his lethal injection. Convicted killer Willie Trottie alleged in his appeal that the drugs to be used in his execution might be expired, which could result in torturous pain, [...]
The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) on Tuesday hosted an event to bring attention to the issue of maritime drug smuggling taking place across international waters, urging prosecution of offenders. There has been a recent increase in the smuggling of heroin and other drugs by sea to Africa, Europe and Asia. During the [...]
Two experts from the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) urged Saudi Arabia on Tuesday to implement an immediate moratorium on the death penalty following an increase in executions, with a significant number of the executions completed by beheading. The experts include the special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, [...]
The Parliament of Greece on Tuesday ratified a bill that criminalizes the denial of the Armenian genocide. The revised bill is titled “Fight Against Xenophobia,” and it was adopted by a vote of 54-42, with 3 parliament members abstaining from the vote. With Thursday’s vote, Greece joined Switzerland and Slovakia to become the third state [...]
