Saudi Arabia was elected chair of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) by “acclamation” on Wednesday after an unopposed bid for leadership with no dissent, despite outcry from human rights organizations ahead of the vote. Saudi Ambassador to the UN Abdulaziz Alwasil will assume the position. The CSW is dedicated to promoting gender [...]
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Federal prosecutors seek seizure of assets linked to former Mongolia PM
US federal prosecutors filed a complaint in a New York federal district court Wednesday seeking the forfeiture of two multimillion-dollar Manhattan apartments purchased by former Mongolian Prime Minister Sukhbaatar Batbold in connection to an alleged money laundering and corruption investigation. The investigation centers around contracts the Erdenet Mining Corporation, a state owned mining company, entered [...]
UN migration agency reports 8,542 died or disappeared during migration in 2023
The UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM) revealed in a report on Tuesday that 8,542 people died or disappeared during migration in 2023. This represents a 20 percent increase in migrant deaths compared to 2022. More than one-third of migrants come from countries in conflict or with large refugee populations. The report stated that at [...]
New York appellate panel reduces $464M Trump civil fraud bond to $175M
An appeals court in New York lowered the $464 million bond imposed on former President Donald Trump in his civil fraud case on Monday. The five-judge panel ordered the bond be reduced to $175 million, and the payment date extended another ten days. The decision stayed a previous court order that Trump post the $464 [...]
Russia watchdog labels 'LGBT public movement' as terrorist organization
A Russian state financial watchdog labelled the “LGBT public movement” as a terrorist organization on Friday, as reported by Russian state media outlet TASS. This development comes three months after the Supreme Court of Russia ordered the LGBT+ movement to be declared as extremist. The Federal Service for Monitoring (Rosfinmonitoring) added the LGBT+ movement to [...]
India court holds legislation creating and regulating Islamic education schools unconstitutional
The Lucknow Bench of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh’s (UP) Allahabad High Court (AHC) held Friday that a Uttar Pradesh state legislation for the establishment and regulation of Islamic education schools called Madarsas is unconstitutional. The court deemed the Uttar Pradesh Board of Madarsa Education Act, 2004 (Madarsa Act) unconstitutional due to its violation [...]
HRW calls for fair, transparent and impartial proceedings in Seychelles anti-corruption case
Human Rights Watch (HRW) in a statement issued Thursday called on Seychelles to hold fair and open legal processes against former presidential advisor Mukesh Valabhji and other defendants accused of embezzlement and money laundering in addition to unlawful firearm possession and conspiracy to commit terrorism in November 2021. Valabhji and his wife were both implicated [...]
India's largest opposition party claims government froze bank accounts ahead of general elections
India’s largest opposition party, the Indian National Congress (INC), claimed on Thursday that the Indian Income Tax (IT) Department froze their bank accounts over alleged discrepancies from assessment years as early as 1994-95. Assessment years refer to the period in which taxpayers assess and report their income to the tax authorities for tax calculation purposes. [...]
European Commission expresses regret over dissolution of Slovakia Special Prosecutor's Office
A European Commission spokesman expressed regret to Reuters on Thursday over Slovakia dissolving its Special Prosecutor’s Office without safeguards to ensure the continuity of effective investigations in the country. The spokesman said that the dissolution of the office would potentially undermine the effectiveness of investigations. The office was officially dissolved on March 20 after its dissolution [...]
The Cost of Revenge: A Cantor's Critique of Israel's Response to Hamas
In the wake of the deadly Hamas terrorist attacks of Oct. 7, 2023, many of Israel’s supporters, myself included, have succumbed to the understandable impulse for violent retribution. Israel is a land that I love, both culturally as a Jew — and third-generation Holocaust survivor — and spiritually as an ordained cantor. It follows that [...]