Minister Alexandre de Moraes of Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court (STF) Wednesday fined messaging app Telegram 1.2 million reals ($236,495) for failing to comply with judicial orders to suspend five accounts supporting former President Jair Bolsonaro in connection with the January 8 storming of state institutions. In an event reminiscent of the January 6, 2020 attack [...]

The Mo Ibrahim Foundation (MIF) Wednesday released its 2022 Index of African Governance, noting that governance across the African continent has “flatlined” since 2019. The report cited deteriorating security and movements to undermine the rule of law as reasons for the stagnation, and warned the lack of progress could seriously jeopardize the African Union’s Agenda [...]

The historic Moscow Helsinki Group Wednesday was shut down by a Moscow court. The human rights group, founded in 1976, had been operational and highly influential in Russia since its founding. The Russian Ministry of Justice had filed for the group’s abolition, and its petition had been approved, as per the judgment read out in [...]

The EU General Court Wednesday held that documents circulated in EU Council working groups regarding an amendment to the EU’s 2013 financial statement directive should be publicly accessible. The court reasoned that the release of these documents would not seriously undermine the legislative process. Emilio De Capitani, a former official at the European Parliament, sought [...]

The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Committee Wednesday voted 6-1 with 14 abstentions to name the historic center of Odesa, Ukraine a World Heritage Site and a World Heritage in Danger site. The endangered site list includes 55 properties like the Bamiyan Valley in Afghanistan and the Old City of Jerusalem.  [...]

New York Attorney General Letitia James Wednesday released a letter to Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp. (MSG Entertainment) regarding its reported use of facial recognition software to identify and deny entry to MSG venues for all lawyers affiliated with law firms that represent clients in pending litigation related to MSG Entertainment. The policy may affect up to [...]

Mifepristone manufacturer GenBioPro Inc. Wednesday filed a lawsuit against the state of West Virginia, challenging the state’s restrictions on medication abortions. Mifepristone is a generic medication abortion pill approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to be used up to ten weeks of pregnancy. GenBioPro alleges that West Virginia’s Unborn Child Protection Act [...]

North Carolina obstetrician and gynaecologist Dr. Amy Bryant Wednesday challenged state laws restricting the prescription and use of medication abortion drug mifepristone. Bryant argues that state laws cannot frustrate the objectives of federal law. As the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) allows the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to regulate medication, Bryant contends [...]

The European Union of Jewish Students (EUJS) Wednesday launched a lawsuit against Twitter in Berlin, Germany to determine if the company insufficiently moderated antisemitic tweets which could incite violence. EUJS and HateAid filed the lawsuit with evidence of six antisemitic and illegal tweets that remained live on the platform despite having been reported which had [...]

The UK Parliament’s Joint Committee on Human Rights Wednesday called on the government to halt its proposed Bill of Rights Bill, warning that it would “seriously damage” the UK’s human rights protections. Committee Chair Joanna Cherry KC MP stated that there is “little appetite” for the reforms, and “it may be more sensible to scrap [...]