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by Sam Reeves © Agence France-Presse SINGAPORE, Singapore (AFP) — British tycoon Richard Branson on Tuesday urged Singapore to spare the life of a mentally disabled Malaysian facing execution, telling AFP the death penalty was a “horrible blotch” on the city-state’s reputation. Nagaenthran K. Dharmalingam, convicted of trafficking a small amount of heroin into Singapore, is due to be hanged on Wednesday after more than a decade on death row. The planned execution has […]
UNITED NATIONS, United States (AFP) — The United States and Britain announced plans Monday to seek Russia’s suspension from the UN Human Rights Council following allegations that Russian troops systematically executed civilians in Bucha, Ukraine. “The images out of Bucha and devastation across Ukraine require us to now match our words with action,” US ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield said in a tweet Monday. “We cannot let a member state that is subverting […]
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (AFP) – Russia’s assault on Ukraine is similar to its actions in the Syrian war, Amnesty International said Tuesday, raising concerns of “war crimes” as the civilian toll grows a month after Moscow’s invasion. “What is happening in Ukraine is a repetition of what we have seen in Syria,” Agnes Callamard, secretary general of the global rights watchdog, told AFP. She was speaking in Johannesburg at the launch of the group’s annual […]
by Miodrag SOVILJ Agence France-Presse BELGRADE, Serbia (AFP) – As free speech was curtailed, her friends imprisoned and the Russian economy tanked in the days after Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine, Marina packed her bags and fled Moscow. But more than a thousand miles away in her new home in Serbia, the 41-year-old former travel agent has found herself unable to escape the long arm of Russian propaganda in Belgrade where the Kremlin’s […]
by Charles ONIANS Agence France-Presse LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) – Two British-Iranians imprisoned for years in Iran were reunited with their families in the early hours of Thursday, tears of joy and long hugs marking the culmination of years of campaigning and earlier false hopes. Their release on Wednesday came as the British government confirmed it had paid a longstanding debt over a cancelled defence contract, and as major powers inch closer to renewing the […]
HAVANA, Cuba (AFP) – A group of 128 Cubans who took part in unprecedented anti-government protests last July were sentenced to prison terms ranging from six to 30 years, the Supreme Court said Wednesday. In trials held in mid-December, 129 Cubans were “accused of committing and provoking serious disturbances and acts of vandalism” while participating in the protests, the court said in a statement. Of the defendants, 128 were found guilty of sedition and theft, […]
Facebook and multiple media websites were partially inaccessible in Russia on Friday, as authorities crack down on critical voices and fighting rages in Ukraine. AFP journalists in Moscow were not able to access Facebook, as well as the sites of media outlets Meduza, Deutsche Welle, RFE-RL and the BBC’s Russian-language service. The monitoring NGO GlobalCheck also said the sites were partially down. On its Telegram account, independent outlet Meduza said that its site was no longer […]
BRUSSELS, Belgium (AFP) – The EU on Wednesday presented draft legislation to force big companies to do due diligence on supply chains to ensure they do not breach human rights or environmental standards. Those that fail to comply would face fines imposed by the EU member country they have business in. EU justice commissioner Didier Reynders said that while companies are concerned about their reputation, EU legislation is needed given the scope of the issues […]
RIO DE JANERIO, Brazil (AFP) – Major mining companies are seeking to expand to currently protected indigenous lands in the Amazon rainforest, bolstered by billions of dollars in financing from international banks and investment firms, a report found Tuesday. Nine mining giants including Brazil’s Vale, Britain’s Anglo American and Canada’s Belo Sun have filed applications seeking authorization to mine on indigenous reservations in Brazil — even though that is currently illegal, said the report by […]
by John Hadoulis Agence France-Presse ATHENS, Greece (AFP) – Two minutes into a Greek jobs fair interview, Hashim, a 21-year-old Afghan refugee, is offered work as a waiter at a swanky Corfu hotel. It’s his ticket out of the grim migrant camp he has called home for the past year, but there’s a caveat: he has to cut his ponytail. “Health and safety protocol,” his interviewer explains. Hashim, who won asylum in Greece a month-and-a-half […]
by Jennifer Gonzalez Covarrubias Agence France-Presse OCAMPO, Mexico (AFP) – In the fir forests of Mexico, one of the world’s most dangerous countries for environmentalists, the legacy of butterfly defender Homero Gomez lives on two years after his suspected murder. Despite the dangers of standing up to illegal loggers, fellow conservationists continue Gomez’s work guarding the El Rosario monarch butterfly sanctuary in Mexico’s central highlands. The agricultural engineer dedicated much of his life to protecting […]
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told leaders in Beijing he expects them to allow UN human rights chief Michelle Bachelet to make a “credible” visit to China including a stop in the troubled Xinjiang region, his spokesman said Saturday. Guterres met with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the sidelines of the Winter Olympics, according to a readout of their talks. The UN chief “expressed his expectation that the contacts between the […]
