The Helsinki District Court in Finland on Friday sentenced a 38-year-old man to life for committing war crimes in Ukraine. Voislav Torden, 38, a Russian-Norwegian better known as Yan Petrovskiy, was a deputy leader of a neo-Nazi paramilitary unit called Rusich, during Russia’s first attacks on Ukraine in 2014. According to the prosecutors, Petrovskyi was [...]

UN Secretary General António Guterres warned of a “disturbing rise” in anti-Muslim bigotry in a speech Friday commemorating the International Day to Combat Islamophobia. In his statement, Guterres urged the world to reject xenophobia and discrimination amid a troubling surge in anti-Muslim sentiments. He warned that governments are employing racial profiling and discriminatory policies that [...]

Amnesty International on Friday welcomed the acquittal of 45 Saturday Mothers members, ending their seven-year-long legal ordeal. The protesters had faced trial for participating in their 700th peaceful vigil, which was banned and violently dispersed by police in August 2018. Dinushika Dissanayake, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director for Europe, called the prosecution “baseless” and stated [...]

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) called on Friday for the immediate release of investigative journalists Bashdar Bazyani and Sherwan Sherwani, stating that their detention by authorities in Iraqi Kurdistan is on “baseless” grounds, and intended to silence critical reporting. Bazyani, the founder of the newly established digital media outlet Media21, was arrested by Kurdish security forces [...]

The International Bar Association (IBA) raised alarm on Friday regarding US President Donald Trump’s latest actions, including pardons issued to approximately 1,500 individuals who were either convicted or charged in the 2021 attack on the US Capitol, pardons issued to 14 militia organization members, and a “blanket pardon” for many others. Trump had also followed [...]

The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit on Friday reversed a lower court decision temporarily blocking President Donald Trump’s executive orders banning diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs at federal agencies and business that contract with the federal government. The US District Court for the District of Maryland had blocked orders 14151 and [...]

Twenty-four organizations highlighted the critical link between fossil fuels and climate harm in a joint submission to the UN on Friday, emphasizing the obligations and responsibilities of states and corporations under the polluter-pays principle and the right to remedy for those affected by the climate crisis. The organizations, which included Amnesty International, the Center for [...]

Amnesty International on Friday called former Philippines President Rodrigo Rua Duterte’s appearance before the International Criminal Court (ICC) a “symbolic moment” for the families of those killed during his administration’s “war on drugs.” Amnesty International’s Southeast Asia researcher Rachel Chhoa-Howard stated: Rodrigo Duterte’s appearance at the International Criminal Court is a sight families of the [...]

The Belgian Prosecutor’s Office conducted 21 searches in the Brussels Capital, along with several regions in Flanders and Portugal on Thursday. The Brussels Examining Magistrate initiated an investigation into corruption allegations within the European Parliament and the Chinese technological company Huawei. According to the statement, the prosecutor’s office alleged that up to 15 former and [...]

The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) decided on Friday that the standard of proof required in major disciplinary offense proceedings for inmates would be raised from a “balance of probabilities” to “beyond a reasonable doubt.” This decision comes n John Howard Society of Saskatchewan v. Saskatchewan (Attorney General), in which it was successfully argued that [...]