Indian authorities registered 23,094 first information reports (FIRs) from March 2020 to March 2022 for violations of COVID-19 policies, according to a report released Sunday by the Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy. Fines were intended to be the primary form of punishment for COVID policy violations with FIRs to follow only on non-payment of such fine. [...]

Peru Monday detained six police generals amid an ongoing investigation into the alleged crimes of former President Pedro Castillo. The anti-corruption unit of Peru’s attorney general’s office Monday detained announced that the proceedings were carried out by prosecutor Luis Martinez and included 26 searches across the country. The public prosecutor’s office also said that the police seized “documents [...]

The National Police of Ukraine Monday announced that investigators have initiated 52,613 criminal proceedings based on crimes committed on Ukrainian territory by members of the Russian Federation’s armed forces and their allies. Authorities are investigating 41,039 cases for violation of the laws and customs of war, 9,162 for encroachment on Ukraine’s territorial integrity and inviolability, [...]

A Turkish court Saturday ordered the release of Sinan Aygül, a journalist detained under Turkey’s recent anti-disinformation law.  Aygül posted a video announcing his release after his lawyer filed an objection to his detention order. He said in the video, “I am free again after 10 days of captivity. I hope neither I nor any [...]

UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) head Ramiz Alakbarov Monday called for a reversal of the decision to ban women from domestic and international NGO humanitarian jobs, in a meeting with Economy Minister Qari Din Mohammad Hanif in Kabul.  On Saturday, the Minister of Economy (MoE) issued a directive prohibiting domestic and international non-governmental organizations [...]

Yael Iosilevich is a law student in the Buchmann Faculty of Law at Tel Aviv University and JURIST’s Staff Correspondent in Israel.  Last Wednesday, 21st December, Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu officially informed Israel’s President that he had successfully formed a new government. Israel has lately suffered instability in both society and government: the recurring political turmoil [...]

The Taliban Saturday ordered domestic and international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to cease employment of female staff members. In an order provided to JURIST by an Afghanistan source, Taliban Minister of Economy Qari Din Mohammad Hanif said “serious complaints have been received regarding female employees’ incompliance with the Islamic hijab and other relevant laws and guidelines” [...]

Russian dissident and critic Alexei Navalny Monday announced that he has been suffering from worsening back pain due to the conditions of his solitary confinement. Navalny has been intermittently held in a “punishment cell” in a Russian prison for the last three months serving his sentence for alleged crimes of parole violations, fraud and contempt [...]

The United Nations Saturday said that Burkina Faso had no grounds to order senior UN official Barbara Manzi to leave the country because the doctrine of persona non grata does not applied to her, given her position as a UN Designated Security Official. Burkina Faso’s military government instructed Manzi, an Italian diplomat, to leave the [...]

A two-judge bench of the Madras High Court ruled Friday that the designation of a senior advocate is not an automatic right but a merit-based privilege. Dismissing the writ petition, the court ruled that the designees for senior advocate positions cannot be capped at a particular percentage nor can the designation be reserved for gender [...]