The US House of Representatives voted 222-199 Thursday to pass an intelligence funding bill that would restrict CIA interrogators to using only those interrogation techniques explicitly authorized by the 2006 Army Field Manual. Army interrogation guide Field Manual 2-22.3 explicitly prohibits the use of waterboarding, electrocution, sensory deprivation, inducing hypothermia, or depriving the subject of [...]

A Philippine judge Thursday dismissed rebellion charges against former Vice President Teofisto Guingona , ruling that police had failed to establish his role in an aborted coup attempt against Philippine President Gloria Arroyo last month. The judge also rejected charges against 17 other people detained in relation to the botched coup, but ordered that an [...]

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) Thursday upheld a 1928 treaty between Nicaragua and Columbia that granted several small islands off the Atlantic coast of Nicaragua to Colombia. Nicaragua had brought suit in 2001 claiming sovereignty over the islands of San Andres, Providencia and Santa Catalina, arguing that the treaty was invalid because it was [...]

Serbian President Boris Tadic has said that Serbia country is planning to file a petition with the UN Security Council seeking an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice on the legality of independence for the region of Kosovo , the now UN-administered territory that is still technically part of Serbia. Tadic said Monday [...]

A Palestinian doctor detained in Libya for eight years after being accused of deliberately infected hundreds of children with the HIV virus Wednesday filed a lawsuit against Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi , alleging that he was tortured during his detention. Ashraf Jima Hajuj, who threatened legal action against Libya in August, told AFP that his [...]

The New Jersey Assembly voted 44-36 Thursday to pass a bill replacing the state current death penalty with life imprisonment. The bill now goes to New Jersey Governor Jon S. Corzine , who is expected to sign it. The New Jersey Senate Monday voted 21-16 to pass a similar bill . If signed, the bill [...]

A coalition of civil rights groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) , filed a new federal lawsuit Wednesday challenging an Arizona law aimed at preventing employers from knowingly hiring illegal immigrants . US District Court Judge Neil V. Wake Friday dismissed an earlier [...]

Five prominent members of the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) were arrested by Malaysian authorities Thursday and will be detained for at least two years under Malaysia's controversial Internal Security Act (ISA) , Malaysian Deputy Internal Security Minister Johari Baharom told the Associated Press. The five activists were apparently involved in orchestrating a November street [...]

Leaders from the 27 countries that make up the European Union on Thursday signed the Treaty of Lisbon , a reform treaty designed to speed up the decision-making process within EU institutions and allow EU members to take a more active role in global issues. Under the terms of the treaty, the current EU presidency [...]

The US Senate Judiciary Committee voted 12-7 Thursday to report contempt of Congress resolutions to the full Senate for White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten and former Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove over their refusal to testify before the committee as part of its investigation into the US Attorneys firing scandal . Late [...]