The UN Security Council on Tuesday condemned terrorist attacks which took place in Pakistan’s Balochistan province on January 31. The attacks killed 48 people, 31 of whom were civilians. In a press release issued by Council President James Kariuki of the United Kingdom, the Council described the attacks as “heinous and cowardly.” It expressed sympathy [...]

The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled last Wednesday that Montgomery County, Maryland, may require teachers to use students’ preferred pronouns and prohibit teachers from sharing information about gender identity with parents. The 2-1 opinion, written by Judge Robert Bruce King, held that the school board’s policy requiring teachers to use preferred [...]

The California Republican Party filed an emergency petition to the US Supreme Court on Tuesday asking for a temporary injunction against Proposition 50, a ballot initiative passed by California voters in November to redistrict the state’s Congressional map outside of its typical process. The appeal to Justice Elena Kagan, who oversees emergency petitions in the [...]

Amnesty International published a report on Tuesday, warning of rising authoritarianism in the US and detailing numerous ways in which the rule of law and basic rights are being threatened. The report, entitled Ringing the Alarm Bells: Rising Authoritarian Practices and Erosion of Human Rights in the United States, ties these areas of concern largely [...]

Twelve states’ attorneys general sued the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Tuesday for conditioning its funding of health programs on compliance with the Trump administration’s policy of recognizing the existence of only two genders. The new HHS condition comes from its new Grants Policy Statement, among other similar policy changes, which sets [...]

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) on Sunday condemned the arson attack on the building of the Beth Israel Congregation and Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life, Mississippi’s largest synagogue. The suspect, Stephen Spencer Pittman, 19, allegedly set the synagogue on fire early Saturday. The ADL’s South Central Regional Office issued the statement saying it was “horrified” [...]

A transgender employee at the US National Security Agency (NSA) sued the Trump administration on Monday, alleging discrimination on the basis of gender identity. Sarah O’Neill, a data scientist at the agency, filed a complaint in the District Court for the District of Maryland against William Hartman, acting director of the NSA. The complaint asserts [...]

Chinese officials on Monday condemned the US seizure of oil tankers headed from Venezuelan ports, calling the acts a “serious violation of international law.” “Venezuela has the right to independently develop mutually beneficial cooperation with other countries,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said at a press conference. Jian stated that China opposes unilateral enforcement of [...]

US President Donald Trump issued a presidential proclamation on Tuesday expanding his existing travel ban by 20 additional countries. The ban restricts the entry of nationals from certain designated countries while imposing partial restrictions on others. The proclamation fully prevents nationals from five new countries from entering the US: Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, South Sudan [...]

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) issued a press release on Monday calling for the release of thousands of people arbitrarily detained in Eritrea. The release states there are believed to be over 10,000 people arbitrarily detained in Eritrea, including politicians, journalists, clergy and students. The OHCHR acknowledged the [...]