A United Nations appeals court ordered the suspension of a war crimes trial for elderly Rwandan suspect Felicien Kabuga this week, saying the defendant was unfit to stand trial, a ruling that deals a blow to the victims of the 1994 Rwandan genocide, Reuters reported. The...
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Thousands of Haitians took to the streets of the capital this week to demand protection against violent gangs terrorizing their neighborhoods, with the Caribbean country seeing a surge in murders and kidnappings in recent years, the Associated Press reported. Protesters marched to the prime minister’s official...
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Pakistani police arrested former Prime Minister Imran Khan this week, a move that could prevent the main opposition leader from participating in this year’s elections and ban him from politics, the Washington Post reported. Khan’s arrest in the city of Lahore came after a court sentenced...
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Central African Republic voters overwhelmingly approved a new constitution following a referendum last month, a vote that could extend the term of incumbent President Faustin-Archange Touadéra, the BBC reported Monday. Officials announced this week that more than 95 percent backed the constitutional amendments, although critics noted...
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Taiwan amended its sexual harassment laws this month following a wave of #MeToo accusations that had gripped the island nation in recent months, the Associated Press reported. The amendments target three laws governing sexual harassment and will include higher penalties, as well as longer periods for...
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A deadline for Niger’s military junta to reinstate the country’s ousted President Mohamed Bazoum ended Sunday, raising the prospect of a military intervention by a powerful West African regional bloc, the Associated Press reported. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) agreed to intervene using...
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India’s Supreme Court stayed Rahul Gandhi’s conviction in a high-profile defamation case over the weekend, a ruling that could allow the opposition leader to return to parliament as a lawmaker and run in next year’s general election, Bloomberg reported. The case began in March when a...
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The iconic booksellers along Paris’ Seine River are refusing to move their stalls to make way for the Olympic Games ceremony taking place in the French capital next year, the Local France reported. Paris officials sent a letter to the 200 booksellers along the river –...
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Polish President Andrzej Duda signed off a bill this week that allows the creation of a special body to investigate Russian influence in Polish politics, despite criticism at home and abroad that the legislation could be used to target political opponents, Politico reported. The legislation will...
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Police raids killed at least 45 people across Brazil this week, prompting concern over the use of lethal force by authorities as they step up operations against criminal gangs, the Washington Post reported. On Wednesday, a gunfight between police and armed assailants in Rio de Janeiro...
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Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AK) criticized a reported decision by the Walt Disney Company not to broadcast a documentary series about modern Turkey’s founding father, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, on its Disney+ streaming platform, Al Jazeera reported. The controversy began after a series of Turkish...
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The Move Forward party will not be part of Thailand’s future coalition government, according to a former ally, the latest blow for the progressive party that won the most seats in the country’s general election in May, the Associated Press reported. On Wednesday, coalition partner Pheu...
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Israel’s parliament passed a law that will designate terrorist, nationalist or racist motivations as aggravating factors in crimes of sexual harassment and sexual assault, prompting condemnation from victims’ associations and opposition lawmakers, the Times of Israel reported. Under the new bill, fines for sexual harassment motivated...
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The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), is planning to add Venice to its list of endangered World Heritage sites, saying that the Italian city is deeply threatened by climate change, mass tourism, and urban development, the Washington Post reported. The designation will put...
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Myanmar’s military junta extended the state of emergency Tuesday, a move that will further delay elections that the army previously promised when it seized power from an elected government more than two years ago, the Associated Press reported. The National Defense and Security Council (NDSC) announced that...
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Pope Francis will arrive in Portugal’s capital Wednesday to take part in the Catholic Church’s World Youth Day, a visit that comes as the European country is grappling with a recent report about decades of sexual abuse of children by the clergy, Agence France-Presse reported. The...
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Senegal’s government ordered the dissolution of the political party of Ousmane Sonko this week shortly after charging the main opposition leader of fomenting insurrection, a move that risks exacerbating the tense political crisis in the relatively peaceful West African nation, Radio France Internationale reported. Sonko was...
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The son of embattled Colombian President Gustavo Petro was arrested for money laundering and illicit enrichment this week, for allegedly taking funds from drug traffickers in exchange for including them in his father’s peace efforts to end a decades-old guerilla war, Reuters reported. Nicolas Petro, a...
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The Taliban is forcing all beauty salons in Afghanistan to close, shuttering some of the last spaces available to women outside the home, the Associated Press reported. The Taliban said it decided to ban beauty salons because they offered services forbidden by Islam and caused economic hardship for the...
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Italy is mulling leaving China’s Belt and Road Initiative, almost four years after it controversially became the only Group of Seven country to join it, Bloomberg reported. Defense Minister Guido Crosetto, a close ally of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, said in an interview Sunday that Italy...
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