WASHINGTON: The US Supreme Court on Friday ended the right to abortion in a seismic ruling that shreds half a century of constitutional protections on one of the most divisive and bitterly fought issues in American political life. The conservative-dominated court overturned the landmark 1973 “Roe v Wade” decision that enshrined a woman’s right to […]
Justice
New York governor urged to quit after damning harassment report
US President Joe Biden joined leading Democrats Tuesday in calling on powerful New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to resign after an independent investigation concluded that he sexually harassed multiple women. Cuomo, who drew praise nationwide for his early pandemic response, denied inappropriate conduct and resisted immediate calls to quit after the probe found he harassed […]
Illinois becomes first US state to ban police lying to underage suspects
Illinois on Thursday became the first US state to ban police officers from lying when questioning minors. Democratic Governor JB Pritzker signed the law, which will come into force in 2022, to put an end to a practice which critics say increases the risk of false confessions being extracted, and therefore of miscarriages of justice. […]
Journalist ‘shocked’ over Iranian kidnap plot in US
Iranian-American journalist Masih Alinejad said Wednesday she was shocked by an Iranian plot to kidnap her from her New York home, as Tehran stiffly denied the allegations contained in a US Justice Department indictment. The White House strongly condemned the plot, which came to light late Tuesday when the Justice Department unveiled charges against four […]
US alarmed as Saudi lawsuits threaten to expose secrets
Two lawsuits pitting Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler against a former intelligence czar threaten to expose highly sensitive US government secrets, prompting Washington to consider a rare judicial intervention, documents show. The cases in US and Canadian courts centre on corruption allegations levelled by Saudi-owned companies against Saad Aljabri, a former spymaster who long worked […]
US alarmed as Saudi lawsuits threaten to expose secrets
Two lawsuits pitting Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler against a former intelligence czar threaten to expose highly sensitive US government secrets, prompting Washington to consider a rare judicial intervention, documents show. The cases in US and Canadian courts centre on corruption allegations levelled by state-owned Saudi companies against Saad Aljabri, a former spymaster who long […]
Family of slain Cambodia activist Kem Ley mark five year anniversary
As the family of slain Cambodian activist Kem Ley rebuild their lives in Australia, his youngest son, born just months after the assassination, acts as a human timepiece measuring the years since the five brothers lost their father. Kem Ley, a popular analyst and critic who dabbled in grassroots politics, was shot at point-blank range […]
US drug firms face jury over opioid addiction epidemic
US pharmaceutical firms accused of stoking a two-decade epidemic of opioid addiction that has seen 500,000 die from overdoses stood trial before a jury for the first time Tuesday. The suit launched by two counties in New York state charges the leading drugmakers and distributors with earning huge profits by pushing highly addictive prescription opioids […]
Threat of indictments looms large for Trump Organization
Lawyers for the Trump Organization were making a last-ditch effort on Monday to ward off what appeared to be an impeding criminal indictment of the ex-president’s company, according to US media. A series of reports in recent days seem to indicate that closed-door investigations into the business practices of the former New York real estate […]
Brazil judge annuls all of Moro’s cases against ex-president Lula
A magistrate on Brazil’s Supreme Court on Thursday annulled two more cases against former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva that had been brought by former judge Sergio Moro, who had previously been deemed by the same court to have been “biased” in convicting and jailing the iconic leftist leader. The latest ruling invalidates all […]