The Prime Minister of Iraq, Adil Abdul-Mahdi, on Friday announced his resignation after nearly two months of increasingly violent protests. Earlier on Friday, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, a key religious figure in Iraq and one of the nation’s most respected Shiite clerics, condemned the violence against protestors and called for a shift in government. Abdul-Mahdi’s [...]

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed into law the “Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2019” (the “Act”), reaffirming and amending the United States-Hong Kong Policy Act of 1992. The Act allows sanctions to be imposed on individuals undermining fundamental freedoms and autonomy in Hong Kong. The president is authorized under the [...]

The Supreme Court of India on Wednesday ordered New Delhi governments to provide clean air and water to its residents or compensate them for unhealthy living conditions caused by the pollution. India’s Supreme Court has “treated the right to live in pollution free environment as a part of fundamental right to life under Article 21 [...]

US President Donald Trump confirmed on Tuesday that he will legally designate Mexican drug cartels as terrorist groups, in his continued mission to “wage war on drug cartels.” In a televised interview with Fox News reporter Bill O’Reilly, Trump stated that those found to be a part or to assist these cartels will face the [...]

Bolivia’s interim President, Jeanine Anez, on Monday provided formal assent to legislation that would create a path to fresh elections. The bill was approved by both chambers of Bolivia’s legislature on Saturday, and Anez announced that she would sign the deal. The law effectively annuls the results of the hotly contested October election and creates [...]

The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Tuesday suspended the extension of the current Chief of Army’s three-year term. The court held that the extension of the term is suspended on grounds that it violates the constitution. This comes as a setback to Prime Minister Imran Khan who initiated the extension “in view of the regional [...]

The UN Environment Program has released its tenth annual report on emissions gaps, having found that the current rate of global carbon emissions will lead to an average temperature rise of 3.5 degrees Celsius over preindustrial levels by 2100. The report was completed by international scientists and specialists that assess where countries are in terms [...]

A leak of highly classified documents from the Chinese government has exposed the manual used in operating China’s mass detention camps, including policing and surveillance tactics to prevent escape from the camps the Chinese government has labeled “vocational training institutions” that hold Muslim Uighurs and other minorities. According to a new report by the International [...]

The Russian State Duma on Thursday approved amendments to a bill entitled “On Mass Media,” designating individuals who communicate with foreign media outlets as “foreign agents.” Since 2012 there have been a number of restrictive laws created regarding the country’s interactions with the international community. The Russian government has already required foreign entities such as [...]

The UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights on Thursday urged governments to improve their records on business and human rights. The statement comes ahead of the Forum on Business and Human Rights to take place from November 25-27 in Geneva. The rights experts stated that “governments have a duty, not an option, to [...]