The Norwegian Ministry of Children and Families announced on Wednesday that it would not stop international adoptions amid an investigation into out-of-country adoption practices but would instead implement risk-reducing measures to ensure that adoptions to Norway are safe and secure. In 2023, the Norwegian government established a committee to investigate illegal or unethical practices in [...]

UN Special Rapporteur Mary Lawlor warned on Wednesday that human rights defenders are increasingly targeted in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), especially in the eastern region of the country, amid intensifying armed conflict. Lawlor said that human rights defenders in the DRC are continuously intimidated, attacked and killed even though authorities have been [...]

Police in New Caledonia arrested 11 people on Wednesday, including independence leader Christian Tein, for alleged organized crime offenses and involvement in the violent protests that have taken place in the country since May 13, according to an interview with prosecutor Yves Dupas. The detainees were placed under police custody for up to 96 hours. [...]

The European Union (EU) agreed on a new package of sanctions against Russia, the Presidency of the Council of the EU confirmed Thursday. This new set of measures is the fourteenth package the EU has issued since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen confirmed the sanctions will [...]

A Swedish court on Thursday acquitted former Syrian general Mohammed Hamo of charges related to his alleged involvement in war crimes committed in Syria in 2012. Hamo had been accused of aiding and abetting a gross violation of international law. Hamo deserted from the Syrian army in June 2012 and joined opposition forces fighting against [...]

The police of the Indian region of Jammu and Kashmir arrested on Wednesday an individual named Hakimdeen suspected of being involved in a recent terror attack, making it the first arrest of the case. The investigation is currently being handled by India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA), with the matter being handed to it by the [...]

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) condemned on Wednesday Chinese authorities’ ongoing suppression of the Muslim community in Xinjiang. The civil rights and advocacy NGO accused the Chinese government of attempting to “erase” Uyghur culture, the Chinese Muslim ethnic minority, by renaming their villages in a manner that reflects the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) ideology. [...]

Amnesty International called on the Egyptian government to immediately stop all forced deportation and arbitrary detention of Sudanese refugees, in a report released on Wednesday. The report documented over 5,000 Sudanese nationals deported from April to September 2023. The report also highlighted the expulsions of 721 Sudanese refugees on June 13, reflecting the authorities’ systemic [...]

Malaysia’s Federal Court on Wednesday dismissed the Malaysian Bar’s bid to appeal a government emergency proclamation over fake news amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The bar raised 27 constitutional questions concerning the validity of the law. Still, the court ruled that the bar did not fulfill the threshold requirement under Section 96 of the Courts of [...]

Victoria Coroner Simon McGregor found Wednesday that the Australian state’s Department of Fairness, Families and Housing (DFFH) breached the human rights of a 17-year-old Aboriginal teenager who took her own life in July 2021 by ignoring her repeated requests to reconnect with her Aboriginal culture. The teenager, known by the pseudonym XY, was a member [...]