Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Friday urged the new Lebanese President Joseph Aoun to ensure judicial independence, accountability and government transparency, adding that his election ends a two-year political crisis which had caused a governance vacuum in the country. HRW emphasized that Aoun needs to adopt a law on judicial independence “that meets international standards, [...]

South Korea’s acting president Choi Sang Mok on Friday accepted the resignation of the head of the Presidential Security Service (PSS). The PSS head, Park Jong Joon, submitted his resignation shortly before appearing for questioning in response to a third summons investigation obstruction of official duties. Park had ignored two prior summonses from investigators, which [...]

US prosecutors seek a 15-year prison term for former Senator Robert (Bob) Menendez of New Jersey on Thursday, following his convictions of bribery, corruption and acting as an unregistered foreign agent on July 16. The charges stemmed from a years-long process in which Menendez utilized his position as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee [...]

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk on Friday criticized social media company Meta’s decision to end fact-checking programs created to battle the spread of misinformation on social networks, stressing the “real world consequences” of unregulated online spaces. Türk cited the immense power of social media to “fuel conflict, incite hate and threaten [...]

The Supreme Court of New Mexico unanimously struck down restrictive abortion access policies in local counties on Thursday. Despite the state having criminalized abortion for over 57 years, New Mexico has now become one of the most liberal states in regard to abortion rights. Writing for the unanimous judgment, Justice C. Shannon Bacon stated in [...]

The Peshawar High Court issued a two-page interim order on Friday preventing the forced repatriation of around 150 Afghan singers and musicians who fled to Pakistan after the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, according to local media. Justice Wiqar Ahmad, who presided over the case, instructed the government to issue a decision on the [...]

The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on Friday an agreement to repatriate approximately $52.88 million in forfeited assets to Nigeria. The assets are linked to a corruption case involving former Nigerian Petroleum Minister Diezani Alison-Madueke and her associates. Under the agreement, $50 million of the repatriated funds will be dedicated to the Distributed [...]

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) called on Venezuelan authorities to reveal the whereabouts of activist Carlos Correa on Thursday, urging the government to release the activist and respect press freedom. RSF Latin America bureau director Artur Romeu stated: We express our deep concern about Carlos Correa’s fate and we urge the Venezuelan government to end its [...]

The High Court of Kenya on Thursday delivered a landmark judgment declaring the criminalization of suicide unconstitutional. In its decision, the court agreed with the petitioners that the criminalization of attempted suicide is unacceptable from a constitutional view and that such individuals need care and assistance rather than punishment. Justice LN Mugambi, delivering the judgment [...]

The Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian parliament) passed legislation on Thursday prohibiting organ harvesting from military and civilian casualties of Russia’s invasion. The measure, Law No. 9558 “On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine on Improving the Organization of Medical Care Using Transplantation,” received broad support, with 254 of 313 lawmakers voting in favor. The law expands previous restrictions [...]