UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan told the UN Security Council Tuesday that he has asked the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to establish an independent commission that will investigate the recent surge in violence in East Timor . "The sad events of recent weeks reflect shortcomings not only on the part of the Timorese leadership, [...]
READ MORE ▸
The Egyptian Parliament has sent an anticipated judicial reform bill prepared by the Ministry of Justice back to Egypt's Cabinet to iron out controversial points, including the Justice Ministry's right to assess the performance of judges, the role of the Supreme Judiciary Council (SJC) in supervising judges, and government control over SJC appointments. Reformist judges [...]
A federal judge has granted a defense request to dismiss a criminal charge that W.R. Grace & Co. and its executives knowingly endangered miners and residents of Libby, Montana by concealing health risks from asbestos contained in vermiculite . Chief US District Judge Donald Malloy of the District of Montana ruled in an order dated [...]
The American Medical Association has passed a measure clarifying its ethical guidelines , which prohibit doctors from participating in torture or coercive interrogations. The AMA on Monday reiterated its contention that a doctor's duty is to heal a patient, and cannot take any part in prisoner interrogations. The AMA added that doctor-patient confidentiality still applies [...]
As expected , the new government of Nepal dropped terrorism charges against 190 Maoist rebels on Tuesday and freed them from jails in nine cities, a Home Ministry spokesman said. About 160 rebels are still incarcerated but will be released once courts issue individual orders. The communist rebels faced charges such as murder and kidnapping [...]
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) will visit the US detention facility at Guantanamo Bay in the coming days, in an effort to assess the overall mood of the camp in the wake of three detainee suicides last weekend. Though the unscheduled visit will not be an inquiry into the three suicides, the [...]
The Libyan retrial of five Bulgarian nurses and one Palestinian doctor accused of infecting over 400 patients, primarily children, with the HIV virus, resumed Tuesday before presiding judge Mahmoud Haouissa adjourned until June 20, stating that the prosecution and defense both need additional time to prepare evidence and witness lists. Haouissa postponed the retrial once [...]
US District Judge Frank Damrell of the US District Court for the Eastern District of California dismissed a lawsuit brought by atheist Michael Newdow against the US government, arguing that the words "In God We Trust" on US currency violate Newdow's rights under the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. In his 18-page opinion , [...]
Australian Attorney General Philip Ruddock said on Tuesday that Australia's national government has overturned the recent Civil Unions Bill 2006 enacted by the legislature in the Australian Capital Territory , the federal district that includes the capital city Canberra. The government of Australian Prime Minister John Howard and his Cabinet announced plans to overrule the [...]
Judge Raouf Abdel-Rahman , the chief judge in the Saddam Hussein trial , told the courtroom Tuesday that this would be the last day the court would hear defense witnesses, fostering speculation that the trial will end soon. Abdel-Rahman cut off defense witnesses despite complaints by American defense lawyer Curtis Doebbler on Monday that the [...]
