The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has confirmed its ruling that a Polish woman's rights were violated when she was denied an abortion based on medical concerns that the pregnancy may cause her to go blind. Alicja Tysiac suffered a retinal hemorrhage after delivering her child by cesarean section in November 2000. The ECHR [...]

Israel released 57 Palestinian detainees Monday in a gesture of good will toward Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas , just days before a planned peace conference sponsored by the US. Last week, the Israeli cabinet approved the release of 90 Palestinians , the remainder of whom currently remain in detention due to procedural delays. Monday's prisoner [...]

Houston oil tycoon Oscar Wyatt pleaded guilty Monday to a charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud for his involvement in the Iraq Oil-for-Food scandal . Wyatt pleaded guilty to only one of five charges against him for his alleged payment of millions of dollars in bribes in return for oil contracts in Iraq. Wyatt [...]

The US Supreme Court Monday turned back a number of cases brought before it for review, including the appeal of Yemeni Guantanamo Bay detainee Salim Ahmed Hamdan challenging the constitutionality of the military commission system. Hamdan was allegedly a driver for Osama bin Laden before his capture and incarceration at Guantanamo Bay and last year [...]

A new law criminalizing the incitement of religious hatred came into effect makes intentionally stirring up hatred against people on religious grounds punishable by a jail sentence of up to seven years. Previously, certain religious groups also deemed to be ethnic designations, such as Jews and Sikhs, received protection under laws against racial hatred; groups [...]

A Chinese dissident writer has been formally arrested in Hangzhou on charges of "inciting subversion of power," advocacy group Chinese Human Rights Defenders said Sunday. Lu Gengsong was initially detained on August 24 on suspicion of subverting state power and illegal possession of state secrets but the second charge was dropped. Human Rights in China [...]

Eight more detainees have been transferred from Guantanamo Bay , the US Defense Department said Sunday. According to the DOD announcement, six detainees were transferred to Afghanistan, one was transferred to Libya and one to Yemen. The names of the eight men were not released nor was the reason for their detention. A Yemeni newspaper [...]

The US Supreme Court begins its fall term Monday with oral arguments in cases concerning the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act and the state of Washington's primary election system. Among the high-profile cases the Court will consider during October Term 2007 is Boumediene v. Bush , consolidated with Al Odah v. United States, where [...]

Pakistani Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry and the Supreme Court of Pakistan on Monday ordered three Islamabad law enforcement officials to be suspended over Saturday's crackdown on lawyers and journalists protesting the reelection bid of Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf outside the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) . Interior Secretary Kamal Shah quickly responded to Chaudhry's [...]

Unofficial results of Constituent Assembly elections in Ecuador on Sunday give the ruling coalition led by President Rafael Correa a landslide victory. Though Correa claimed an immediate victory, opposition leader Gilmar Gutierrez said he will refuse to accept a leftist victory until the Supreme Electoral Tribunal certifies the results in a few weeks. Initial results [...]