UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk on Friday urged the Israeli government to abandon proposed legislation that would mandate death sentences exclusively for Palestinians in specific cases, for crimes committed either in Israel or the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Türk stated that the proposed legislation is “inconsistent with Israel’s obligations under the International Covenant [...]

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Tuesday condemned the pending $11.1 billion US arms sale to Taiwan, characterizing the deal as a violation of the “One China” principle and a dangerous signal to “separatist forces.” The statement was made on the closing day of the operation “Justice Mission 2025,” a large-scale military exercise conducted by [...]

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) called on leaders of the armed rebel coalition controlling Bukavu in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to fully account for the abduction and torture of journalist Honneur-David Safari, and to prevent any further attacks on reporters.  The RSF shared the following about Safari’s release and urged an end to [...]

The US on Wednesday announced sanctions against four companies operating in Venezuela’s oil sector, declaring four associated oil tankers as blocked property. In the statement released by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the US government alleges that some of these vessels are part of the “shadow fleet” serving Venezuelan President Nicolás [...]

US President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he is “removing” National Guard troops from Chicago, Los Angeles, and Portland after a major Supreme Court setback that sharply narrowed his authority to federalize state guard units for domestic law-enforcement missions. The court’s decision casts the Chicago deployment as likely unlawful under the Posse Comitatus Act, and [...]

Indonesia enacted its new penal code on Friday, replacing colonial-era laws that had governed the country for over a century. Coordinating Minister for Legal, Human Rights, Immigration and Corrections Yusril Ihza Mahendra described the move as a historic milestone that marks the beginning of a new era in Indonesia’s legal system. The legal reform implements [...]

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te vowed on Thursday to defend the island’s sovereignty, just days after Beijing concluded the “Justice Mission 2025” military drills near Taiwan. President Lai pledged in his New Year’s address to firmly safeguard national sovereignty, strengthen national defense and the resilience of the whole society, and comprehensively construct an effective deterrence and democratic [...]

Finnish police announced on Wednesday that they are investigating damage to an undersea telecommunications cable in the Gulf of Finland after seizing a vessel suspected of causing the incident. According to a police statement, telecommunications authorities detected a fault in the undersea cable linking Helsinki and Tallinn, Estonia’s capital, on the morning of December 31. [...]

UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk on Wednesday condemned Israel’s suspension of numerous aid agencies operating in Gaza, warning that the move worsens an already intolerable situation for the people in Gaza. Türk urged all states with influence to use their voice to press Israel to immediately allow unhindered aid to enter Gaza. Israel recently [...]