The US Department of Justice said Tuesday that it will drop charges against Mexico’s former defense minister and return him to Mexico for possible prosecution. Former Mexican Secretary of National Defense General Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeda, nicknamed “The Godfather,” has been accused of working on behalf of the cartel H-2. He allegedly took bribes to protect [...]
Iraq’s interior ministry said Monday that the country hanged 21 individuals convicted of terrorism and murder as part of a series of ongoing executions since it defeated the Islamic State (Daesh) in 2017. The executions included two suicide bombers responsible for terrorist attacks on Tal Afar that killed dozens of people, the statement said. No [...]
The UN High Commission for Refugees warned Tuesday of a growing humanitarian crisis in northern Ethiopia where armed conflict between the federal government forces and local Tigrayan forces broke out on November 10. Spokesperson Babar Baloch told a press briefing in Geneva that more than 27,000 refugees have fled into neighboring Sudan since the outbreak [...]
Hungary and Poland vetoed the EU budget and COVID-19 recovery package Monday in objection to a rule of law clause. The leaders of Hungary and Poland took issue with a provision that would tie the funds to respect for democratic norms. Another provision would allow a qualified majority of EU governments to impose sanctions on [...]
The first person charged under the controversial security law imposed on Hong Kong by China earlier this year entered a not guilty plea Monday. Tong Ying-kit, 24, has been charged with inciting secession and engaging in terrorist activities for his actions during protests on July 1. According to reports, he drove a motorcycle into a group of [...]
UN human rights experts called Monday for an immediate end to the systematic detention and criminalization of human rights defenders, as well as excessive use of force against them. In the past three months, Cambodian citizens attempting to exercise their rights to peaceful assembly have suffered persecution and excessive force at the hands of government [...]
Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Monday urged the EU to press for human rights reforms in Central Asia during an upcoming meeting. Josep Borrell, High Representative of the EU, was set to have a virtual meeting with foreign ministers of five Central Asian countries—Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan—at the 16th EU-Central Asia Ministerial Meeting [...]
Fifteen Asia-Pacific countries signed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) on Sunday after eight years of negotiations. The countries include Australia, China, Japan, the Philippines, New Zealand and Malaysia. The 15 member countries account for about 30 percent of the world’s population and 30 percent of global GDP, making it the largest trade agreement in the world. [...]
European privacy activist group Noyb filed suit Monday in Germany and Spain alleging that Apple’s tracking tool violates European data collection laws. The suits concern Apple’s Identifier for Advertisers (IDFA) technology. An IDFA is a unique identifier for each iPhone that provides Apple and third-party advertisers with users’ online, application and mobile behavior. Noyb claims [...]
Peru’s interim President, Manuel Merino, stepped down Sunday after less than a week in office. Merino was appointed on November 9 to replace popular leader Martín Vizcarra, who was impeached by the legislature last week for “moral incapacity.” Legislators accused Vizcarra of giving out government construction contracts in exchange for bribes while he was governor of Peru’s Moquegua [...]
