Former Bosnian Serb political leader Radovan Karadzic convicted Thursday of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes and sentenced to 40 years by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) . The crimes for which Karadzic were convicted took place during the conflicts in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. The court [...]

Amnesty International (AI) said Thursday that Myanmar’s new government has been presented with a historic opportunity to change course on human rights, but that doing so would mean making a commitment to break away from its previous “deeply repressive legal framework that for years has fueled arbitrary arrests and repression.” In a newly published research [...]

The UN Human Rights Council decided Wednesday to establish a three-person commission to investigate allegations of human rights abuses in South Sudan. The commission was established for a year term and will “monitor and report on the situation of human rights in South Sudan and make recommendations for its improvement,” producing a written report that [...]

North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory on Wednesday signed into law a bill that prevents local governments from enacting their own nondiscrimination ordinances. Under the new law, which was passed by both chambers of the state’s legislature during a special session, cities and counties will be unable to pass laws allowing transgender people to use the [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Thursday urged Iran to end restrictions that prevent access to lawyers for those charged with national security crimes. According to the rights group, there have been several instances of people charged with political or national security crimes being denied access to independent legal counsel during the investigative process or their [...]

Authorities in the US state of Texas on Tuesday executed a 33-year-old man accused of killing a city code enforcement officer. Adam Ward has been on death row in Texas since 2007 . The US Supreme Court dismissed the appeal of Adam Ward last October, despite arguments from his lawyers that Ward had an IQ [...]

JURIST Guest Columnist Sari Bashi of Human Rights Watch discusses the flaws of Israeli judicial review in the context of Mohammed al-Qeeq’s hunger strike… After 93 days of refusing food, an emaciated Palestinian journalist named Mohammed al-Qeeq resumed eating on February 26. He began his hunger strike to protest being held by Israeli military officials [...]

The US Supreme Court on Wednesday heard oral arguments in the case Zubik v. Burwell . The case consolidates challenges by several different religious institutions opposing the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The plaintiffs argue that the contraceptive coverage mandate forces non-profit organizations to act against their deeply-held religious beliefs. The US Department of Health and [...]

Former Malaysian premier Mahathir Mohamad on Wednesday filed a lawsuit against Prime Minister Najib Razak alleging corruption and abuse of power. The lawsuit comes after allegations and formal charges were made against Razak for his actions in depositing state funds into his personal account. In January the Malaysian Attorney General’s Office cleared the prime minister [...]

UN Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights, Ivan Šimonović expressed concern Tuesday over the deteriorating human rights situation in Burundi. The violence has come with the emergence of armed groups opposed to the government and has the potential to disrupt the nation and the Great Lakes region in general. In a UN report , Šimonović acknowledged [...]