UN experts on Thursday urged Venezuela to ensure that the country’s Attorney General and  Ombudsperson are appointed based on merit, stressing that both positions play a crucial role in protecting human rights and upholding the rule of law. The experts further added: We regret that in the past, appointments to these positions were made outside [...]

Canadian Bill C-12, the Strengthening Canada’s Immigration System and Borders Act, received royal assent on Thursday. Following its passing, 28 domestic and international refugee and migrant rights groups released a joint statement that denounced the bill as an attack on refugee and migrant rights. Bill C-12 is a modified version of Bill C-2, which itself [...]

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) issued a warning Thursday that the Persian Gulf crisis is affecting agricultural production and food security worldwide, leaving significant impacts on farmers, migrant workers, and consumers. Máximo Torero, the chief economist for the FAO, stated: has triggered one of the most rapid and severe disruptions to global commodity [...]

A Taiwanese court on Thursday convicted former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je on corruption-related charges, marking a major development in one of the island’s most closely watched political cases. The court found Ko guilty of multiple offenses, including the receipt of bribes amounting to NT$2.1 million (approximately $65,000) in March 2020. These came in the form [...]

In a 134-page decision, the US District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina on Thursday upheld a North Carolina voting law as constitutional under the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments as well as the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA). The law in question, SB 824, among other things, requires photo identification cards when [...]

A jury in New Mexico on Tuesday found tech company Meta liable for harming children and misleading consumers about the safety of its platforms, ordering the company to pay $375 million in civil penalties for violating consumer protection laws. New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez praised the result, saying : New Mexico is proud to [...]

The UN Working Group on discrimination against women and girls on Wednesday called on Armenia to use political momentum from recent policy and legislative reforms to advance from formal gender equality measures to substantive gender equality in the country. Following a 10-day trip to Armenia, the Working Group released a statement commending the government for [...]

The UN secretary general on Wednesday called for the immediate release of 118 staff members currently detained around the world, warning that attacks and arbitrary arrests targeting UN personnel have increased at an alarming rate. Secretary General António Guterres made the statement in recognition of International Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members, [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Thursday urged national leaders to cease combative rhetoric as conflict continues in the Middle East, warning that further escalation could result in devastating civilian casualties and regional instability. Commenting on the destabilization of the region, Philippe Bolopion, executive director of HRW, stated: As the Middle East conflict has spread and [...]

A US federal appellate court on Wednesday upheld the Trump administration’s practice of detaining undocumented immigrants without bond, reversing a lower court decision amid increasingly overcrowded detention centers and administrative courtrooms. The decision aligns with a US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruling in February, which also upheld the denial of a bond [...]