Human Rights Watch on Thursday called for Moroccan authorities to exonerate activist Ibtissame Lachgar, who remains jailed after being sentenced to 30 months in prison for posting a photo of herself wearing a shirt reading “Allah is lesbian.” Lachgar was arrested in August and convicted this month of “causing harm to Islam.” The Rabat First [...]

The Hong Kong Legislative Council voted against a controversial bill on Wednesday that would have allowed some same-sex couples to register their partnership legally. It was opposed by 71 votes to 14, leaving Hong Kong’s local government less than two months to comply with their top court’s ruling.  The bill follows a 2023 Hong Kong [...]

The Hong Kong Court of First Instance ruled Tuesday that precluding a genetic mother from the parentage of a child born as a result of reciprocal in-vitro fertilization (RIVF) is unconstitutional. However, Judge Russell Coleman will rule later on the question of relief, awaiting further arguments from counsel. The case concerns provisions from the Births [...]

Conservative commentator Charlie Kirk died after being shot in the neck at a Utah Valley University event Wednesday, as immediately noted by US President Donald Trump. Two suspects were taken into custody, but both have been released. FBI director Kash Patel announced that one was let go following interrogation, and another detained earlier was determined [...]

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) on Wednesday called on Houthi de facto authorities in Yemen to immediately restore access to independent news platform Barran Press, following reports of a nationwide access ban on the outlet. Barran Press, which is based in the government-controlled city of Marib, east of Yemen’s capital Sanaa, first reported the [...]

A federal appeals court on Wednesday upheld most of the sweeping gun restrictions enacted in New Jersey since a 2022 Supreme Court decision prompted the state to ban firearms in most public spaces. The Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in a 2-1 decision that New Jersey can prohibit guns in parks, libraries, entertainment venues, [...]

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) on Tuesday called on US President Donald Trump’s administration to withdraw newly proposed changes that would limit the duration of journalist visas, warning the policy risks undermining press freedom. Under current regulations, foreign media representatives are admitted for the “duration of status” (D/S), meaning they may remain in the US [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) and 11 other international legal and rights groups on Wednesday called on a Türkiye court to dismiss ongoing proceedings against the Istanbul Bar Association (ISBA) executive board. The groups filed an amicus curiae brief with the Istanbul 26th Heavy Penal Court, arguing that the charges and civil sanctions against the ISBA [...]

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) called on Tanzanian authorities on Tuesday to lift the suspension of news platform JamiiForums and protect press freedom ahead of the October 29 elections. CPJ’s regional director, Angela Quintal, criticized the suspension, calling it a clear effort to suppress public debate and restrict access to information. She urged Tanzanian [...]

The US Supreme Court agreed on Tuesday to hear President Donald Trump’s administration’s appeal of two lower court rulings that found the tariffs he imposed were unlawful, holding that they exceeded presidential authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). The Supreme Court issued a writ of certiorari, an allowance of appeal, in Trump [...]