Germany’s Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbaue on Tuesday announced that she had ordered the partial dissolution of the elite Kommando Spezialkräfte (KSK) commando unit. The unit has faced several recent allegations, including the discovery of missing munitions, growing internal ties to far-right extremists, and allegations they have become independent of the military’s chain of command. Kramp-Karrenbauer told [...]

A group of protesters filed a class action lawsuit Monday in the US District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania against the City of Pittsburgh and Pittsburgh Bureau of Police (PBP) for allegedly abusive tactics employed during recent racial justice protests in the East Liberty neighborhood. The suit targets Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto, Public [...]

The new US-Mexico-Canada trade agreement (USMCA) formally took effect on Wednesday, superseding the 26-year reign of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The trade agreement, which the US Senate approved in January, contains much of the same text as NAFTA. However, the USMCA updates provisions regarding digital commerce, anti-corruption and food safety. Further, the [...]

US President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign and the Republican National Committee (RNC) sued Pennsylvania Monday over absentee ballot drop-off locations. The suit targets the elections boards of all 67 counties in the state. It says that “Free and fair elections are essential to the right of Americans to choose through their vote whom they elect to represent [...]

In a statement released on Tuesday, the EU announced they would lift travel restrictions from 15 nations but not the US. The nations approved include Algeria, Australia, Canada, Georgia, Japan, Montenegro, Morocco, New Zealand, Rwanda, Serbia, South Korea, Thailand, Tunisia, Uruguay and China. China’s inclusion on the list is subject to confirmation of reciprocity. The [...]

Florida representatives sent a letter to the Florida Board of Bar Examiners on Monday, expressing concern over holding the July bar exam in-person as COVID-19 cases continue to spike. Florida only has two test centers—one in Orlando and one in Tampa—to house nearly 2,000 bar takers. Many, including Representative Carlos Smith, have urged the Board [...]

Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro on Monday ordered the EU ambassador Isabel Brilhante Pedrosa to leave the country within 72 hours. Her expulsion came hours after the EU placed sanctions on 11 Venezuelan officials for “undermining democracy and the rule of law in Venezuela.” The sanctions are against those who were “responsible notably for acting against the [...]

The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held Monday that Washington state has jurisdiction over crimes involving non-Native Americans on the Yakama Nation reservation. Public Law 280, which was passed in 1953, gave states the “consent of the United States” to assume full jurisdiction over causes of action on Native American reservations by [...]

The US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit ruled Monday that former St. Louis Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce was entitled to absolute immunity over her decision to prosecute former police officer Jason Stockley for first-degree murder. In 2011 Stockley and another officer observed what they thought was a drug transaction, which led to a [...]

Iran sentenced journalist Ruhollah Zam to death on Tuesday for inciting unrest and protests in Iran. Zam ran Amadnews, an anti-government website that had around 1.4 million followers on the messaging app Telegram. On Amadnews, Zam shared protest videos and damaging information about Iranian officials. The website was shut down by the government, but it [...]