Brazil’s federal prosecutors filed new corruption charges against former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on Monday. Da Silva is already involved in two other corruption investigations. In September a Brazilian judge accepted charges against da Silva that include complaints that he illegally received almost USD $1.1 million in improvements and expenses from a construction [...]

According to a report released Monday, the Obama administration conducted a $1.3 billion arms deal with Saudi Arabia last year despite warnings that such contribution to the country’s activities could implicate the US for war crimes. The information was discovered through current and former government officials as well as documents obtained through the Freedom of [...]

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein on Monday reiterated a call for an international investigative body in Yemen to handle allegations of violations of international human rights laws . following an attack on a funeral over the weekend. Zeid expressed frustration in his message as he has pushed the UN Human [...]

French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault stated Monday that France intends to pursue avenues for the International Criminal Court (ICC) to initiate an investigation into the alleged war crimes committed by Syrian and Russian forces in Aleppo. Syria is not a member of the ICC, so initiating an investigation may be difficult. “We do not agree [...]

Qatar initiated a public awareness campaign Monday to educate workers about the new labor laws that will take effect in December. Many migrant workers are employed in Qatar, and the new laws are intended to make it easier for workers to change and leave jobs. The kafala employee sponsorship system is being replaced with legislation [...]

JURIST Contributing Editor William G. Ross of the Cumberland School of Law discusses the implications that the choice to vote for either presidential candidate in this upcoming election will have in the Supreme Court… Since this year’s presidential election is likely to tip the ideological balance of the US Supreme Court, judicial appointments ought to [...]

The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled against Native American tribes on Sunday, allowing construction on the Dakota Access Pipeline to move forward. The Standing Rock Sioux and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribes sought a permanent injunction to block construction of the 1,170-mile pipeline, which they say would be built [...]

The Florida Democratic Party filed a federal lawsuit on Sunday against Governor Rick Scott requesting he extend the voting registration period in the state an extra week due to Hurricane Matthew. Currently the voter registration period in Florida for the upcoming presidential election ends on Tuesday. The complaint states that Scott refused to extend the [...]

The Ethiopian government declared a national state of emergency on Sunday. This is the first time that a state of emergency has been declared in the country in 25 years, since the ruling party came into power. Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn announced the state of emergency to local news services and explained that the declaration [...]

The Federal Supreme Court of Iraq ruled Monday against Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi’s proposal to eliminate the mainly ceremonial roles of Vice President and Deputy Prime Minister. The court reasoned that these roles are constitutionally required and their elimination can only be passed through an absolute majority in parliament and then ratified by a national [...]