The Chinese government on Friday announced that it will prosecute Ma Jian, a former vice minister of China’s Ministry of State Security, after he was accused of bribery and abusing his powers. Jian was put under investigation in 2015 following the conviction of Zhou Yongkang, the former head of China’s domestic security services, for bribery, [...]

JURIST Guest Columnist Hugh D. Spitzer of the University of Washington School of Law discusses US Supreme Court decisions which could derail the anticipated efforts by president-elect Trump to punish so-called “sanctuary cities” … During the recent election campaign, candidate Donald Trump threatened to curtail federal funding for “sanctuary cities” that refuse to cooperate with [...]

A spokesman for British Prime Minister Theresa May on Friday condemned remarks made by US Secretary of State John Kerry on the current Israeli government. In a speech given on Thursday, Kerry criticized the building of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, stating that such actions jeopardize prospects of peace in the [...]

The Grand National Assembly of Turkey announced Friday that its Commission on the Constitution approved a draft amendment to the Turkish Constitution which would give the president greater power. If the National Assembly approves the bill, which it is set to discuss in January, a referendum would have to approve the amendment as well, before [...]

The White House on Thursday announced that sanctions would be enacted against Russia as a response to Russia’s involvement in hacking during the recent election and for the treatment of US diplomats in Russia. The White House alleged that Russia intentionally tried to interfere with the US election in favor of one of the candidates, [...]

Murray Energy Corporation , the largest privately owned coal company in the US, filed a lawsuit last Thursday in an attempt to block new regulations promulgated by the Office of Surface Mining, Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE) . The lawsuit was filed two days after the agency announced its decision on the new rule. In its [...]

North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un ordered the executions of 340 people in the five years that he has been in power, according to a report from the Institute for National Security Strategy , a South Korean think tank. About 140 of those executed are believed to have been senior officials in the North Korean [...]

Lt. Governor Brian Calley of Michigan signed a measure Wednesday prohibiting local regulation of shopping bags. The measure refers to the bags as “auxiliary containers” and defines the term to encompass containers made of plastic, cloth, paper, etc. The bill will not allow local governments to regulate, prohibit, or impose a fee on the containers. [...]

Colombian Congress approved a measure Wednesday granting amnesty to low-level Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrillas who have not committed atrocious crimes. The measure will also create a special procedural system for FARC fighters accused of offenses outside the boundaries of amnesty. The new law is part of a peace deal between the Colombian [...]

JURIST Guest Columnist Larry Catá Backer, of Pennsylvania State University discusses consequences of President elect Trump’s rejection of the TTP … The Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) and its European twin, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), mean to provide a basis for the organization and management of global trade that to some extent supplements [...]