Sri Lankan Prison Commissioner Gamini Dissanayake announced earlier this week that President Ranil Wickremesinghe pardoned over 1,000 prisoners because of the Christmas holiday. The exact number released was 1,004, comprising 989 men and 15 women. A majority of those who were pardoned by the president Sunday were those accused of being unable to pay outstanding [...]

Tokyo’s High Court found the government of Japan not liable Tuesday for damages related to the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster and associated mass evacuations, leaving responsibility solely with plant operator the Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO). The ruling also reduced the damages amounts of a previous court order from $414,400 to $165,000 for 44 of [...]

The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights released a report on Thursday detailing the “further and rapid deterioration” of human rights in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem since October 7. The report stressed that escalating violence puts civilian populations at risk and urged Israel and other authorities to take necessary [...]

The US Department of Defense (DOD) announced on Thursday that new Offices of Special Trial Counsel (OSTC) will have authority over the decision to prosecute a number of serious crimes committed in the branches of the military, including sexual assaults, removing certain cases from an accused service member’s chain of command. Before the OSTC reform, [...]

Poland’s Minister of Culture and National Heritage, Bartłomiej Sienkiewicz, issued an order on Wednesday for the liquidation of three prominent state media companies – television network Telewizja Polska (TVP), national radio broadcaster Polskie Radio and news agency Polska Agencja Prasowa (PAP). According to Sienkiewicz, the aim of this move is to ensure the continued operation [...]

A banned protest in Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), turned violent on Wednesday as police forcefully dispersed demonstrators, leaving several people wounded. The protest was organized by opposition leaders running against incumbent President Felix Tshisekedi, following concerns over the legitimacy of the national elections results. However, the protest was banned over [...]

The Colorado Republican State Central Committee (CRSCC) filed a petition for a writ of certiorari Wednesday to overturn the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision which removed former president Donald Trump from the 2024 Republican primary ballot. The Colorado Supreme Court found Trump engaged in an insurrection on January 6, 2021. Represented by the American Center for Law [...]

The Pakistan Supreme Court held Wednesday that implementing the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act, 2023, which amends and curtails the court’s powers, did not violate any fundamental rights, instead, enhancing their protection and implementation. The court rejected arguments about potential threats to judicial independence and the Chief Justice’s role as the “Master of the [...]

The Peshawar High Court suspended the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) ruling Tuesday, which deemed the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf’s (PTI), the party of the former Prime Minister Imran Khan, intra-party polls as unconstitutional and revoked the party’s ‘bat’ election symbol. Local news portal Dawn has reported having a copy of the order which instructed the issuance [...]

The Indian Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issued a ban Wednesday on the Masarat Alam faction of the Jammu and Kashmir Muslim League (MLJK-MA) for a five-year period under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in an alleged attempt to curb “secessionist activities.” The MHA alleged that the MLJK-MA and its members are actively “involved [...]