A judge for the US District Court Eastern District of Virginia on Friday sentenced Somali pirates Abukar Osman Beyle and Shani Nurani Shiekh Abrar to 21 life sentences for their role in the killing of four Americans aboard a yacht off the Horn of Africa in February 2011. Fourteen of the 19 people who participated [...]

The Scottish Parliament unanimously approved a bill on Thursday to hold a Scottish independence referendum. The bill outlines the referendum rules . Both independence opponents and supporters in parliament supported the bill, which will permit a 16-week campaign period and impose financial limits on campaigners to create a level playing field. The vote will be [...]

International Criminal Court (ICC) Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda on Thursday urged the government of Libya to address serious crimes committed in the country and encouraged the international community to end the impunity gap in Libya. Bensouda welcomed gains in Libya’s legal system that would eliminate rape but voiced concern for detainees in the country. She [...]

Amnesty International (AI) on Wednesday urged the UN Security Council not to defer the International Criminal Court (ICC) trial of Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta despite mounting political pressure. A draft resolution seeking the deferral was circulated earlier this month by Rwanda, a Security Council member, and will be put to a vote on Friday. In [...]

Former German president Christian Wulff went on trial Thursday in Hanover, denying allegations of corruption. In court, Wulff delivered a statement, insisting that he acted without fault. Prosecutors charged Wulff with corruption stemming from his 2008 visit to the Munich Oktoberfest beer festival during which prosecutors allege he accepted some €700 for a hotel stay [...]

The President of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) , Remigiusz Henczel , on Wednesday presented the annual report to the UUN General Assembly (UNGA) , claiming that the UNHRC has achieved significant progress in the last year despite inadequate financial resources. Henczel stated that the UNHRC adopted “107 resolutions, decisions and President’s statements” within [...]

A judge for the US District Court for the Southern District of New York (SDNY) on Thursday dismissed a class action lawsuit arising against Google over the company’s unapproved scanning and uploading of copyrighted materials. The case revolved primarily around Google’s Library Project , which uses advanced scanning techniques to provide digital copies of books [...]

The US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on Wednesday upheld the 2011 conviction of Tarek Mehanna, who was found guilty on four terror-related charges and three charges of lying to authorities. Mehenna was accused of traveling to Yemen and training in a terror camp with the intention of traveling to Iraq to fight [...]

The US Supreme Court will not hear a case regarding racial discrimination in home sales and rentals after the matter was settled out of court on Wednesday. Originally scheduled for oral argument December 4, the case of Mount Holly v. Mt. Holly Gardens Citizens in Action, Inc. presented the issue of whether disparate impact claims [...]

An Egyptian court on Thursday sentenced 12 men to 17 years in prison for their participation in the October protests at Al-Azhar University. The entire demonstration formed at the university in support of deposed Islamist president Mohammed Morsi who was removed from office in a military-led coup in July. The 12 defendants, all students of [...]