US Permanent Representative to the UN Nikki Halley announced on Tuesday that the US will be withdrawing from the UN Human Rights Council . Haley accused the Human Rights Council of protecting human rights abusers and being a “cesspool of political bias,” a “hypocritical and self-serving organization that makes a mockery of human rights,” and [...]
Qatar filed an Application Instituting Proceedings against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Monday, accusing the UAE of discriminating against Qataris in violation of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD) . Qatar accuses the UAE of, among other things, “prohibit by [...]
Human Rights Watch (HRW) submitted an amicus brief to the Colombian Constitutional Court on Tuesday calling for changes to the Special Jurisdiction of Peace bill—a peace accord with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The Court is reviewing the bill, which was passed on November 30, 2017. HRW has identified three shortcomings in the [...]
UN Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights Phillip Alston on Monday accused the US of criminalizing being poor . The report accuses the US of criminalizing being homeless through laws that ban sleeping outside, panhandling and public urination. The report states that 1,800 homeless people in Skid Row in Los Angeles have access [...]
Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson filed lawsuits on Monday against Google and Facebook for failing to disclose information about who purchased political ads that were displayed on their platforms. Both companies are accused of violating RCW 72.17A, which requires that “political campaign and lobbying contributions and expenditures be fully disclosed to the public and [...]
The US Supreme Court delivered two rulings on Monday, in Hughes v. United States and Koons v. United States , related to when a prison sentence can be reduced through 18 USC §3582(c)(2) . In Hughes, the court ruled that §3582(c)(2) applied to a Type-C plea agreement. In Koons, the court ruled §3582(c)(2) cannot be [...]
California Governor Jerry Brown signed SB 785 into law on Thursday, placing limitations on when a person’s immigration status can be disclosed in an open court. The law adds two new sections to the Evidence Code—one that addresses civil cases and one for criminal cases. In both types of cases, the law will require a [...]
The US Department of the Treasury issued new sanctions against Iran on Thursday. The new sanctions target two individuals, Mohammad Ibrahim Bazzi and Abdallah Safi-Al-Din. Both of them have been identified as Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs). Bazzi has been identified as a financier for Hezbollah, and Safi-Al-Din has been identified as Hezbollah’s representative to [...]
The US Senate approved a resolution on Wednesday that rejects the Federal Communication Commission’s “Restoring Internet Freedom” ruling that dismantled net neutrality. The resolution passed the Senate with a vote of 52-47. Three Republican senators voted for the resolution, including Collins of Maine, Kennedy of Louisiana and Murkowski of Alaska. Senator McCain of Arizona did [...]
The European Commission announced on Thursday that they will be referring France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Romania and the UK to the European Court of Justice over air quality. France, Germany and the UK are being referred to the court due to excessive nitrogen dioxide levels and for “failing to take appropriate measures to keep exceedance [...]
