U.S. and UK Want U.N. Back in Iraq

Staff / Truthdig Aug 2, 2007 The United Nations hasn't had much of a presence in Iraq since a car bomb blew up its headquarters back in 2003, but that could soon change. The U.S. and Britain have begun pushing a Security Council resolution that would expand the U.N.'s mandate in Iraq, with a focus on diplomacy and human rights. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Young Scholars Tell the President ‘No’ on Torture

Amy Goodman / Truthdig Jul 11, 2007 Sometimes it takes a brave, idealistic young person (or nearly 50 of them) to break all the rules of pomp and circumstance, pass the president a note, and school him about human rights. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Report: Rights Abuse Is Easing Under Raul

Staff / Truthdig Jul 6, 2007 An independent Cuban human rights organization says Cuba has taken fewer and freed more political prisoners under the rule of Raul Castro, compared with his brother, Fidel. But the group says human rights abuses by the government are still a problem, as is the U.S. embargo, which it says imposes unnecessary hardship on the Cuban people. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Vatican Shuns Amnesty International

Staff / Truthdig Jun 14, 2007 The Vatican is urging Catholics not to donate to Amnesty International because, it says, the group selectively promotes abortion. The human rights organization says the church has misrepresented its policy and, in the process, imperiled human rights. The World Health Organization estimates that 70,000 women die every year from unsafe abortions. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Gitmo Detainee Commits Suicide

Staff / Truthdig May 31, 2007 A Saudi prisoner at the detention center in Guantanamo Bay has apparently committed suicide, the U.S. military said in a statement. Human rights organizations have repeatedly warned that indefinite detentions -- some now longer than five years -- combined with harsh "interrogation techniques" and unfair trials could drive detainees to take their own lives. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Shutting Down Guantanamo

Staff / Truthdig Apr 25, 2007 Jumana Musa, advocacy director for domestic human rights and international justice at Amnesty International, speaks with Truthdig about the war on human rights, why conditions at Guantanamo have only gotten worse and why she has hope for the future. Dig deeper ( 18 Min. Read )

Yahoo Sued for Collaborating With China

Staff / Truthdig Apr 20, 2007 A human rights organization is suing Yahoo for assisting the Chinese government in arresting dissidents by providing information on its users. Like Google and Microsoft, Yahoo has defended the practice of handing over data to China as a necessary evil mitigated by the benefits of the Internet, crippled and corrupt though it may be. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Cuba Leads Charge to End U.N. Human Rights Investigations

Staff / Truthdig Mar 20, 2007 The newly formed U.N. Human Rights Council is debating whether to do away with the special rapporteurs whose job is to investigate global human rights abuses. A group of countries typically subjected to such scrutiny, with Cuba and China at the helm, argues that domestic reports should be sufficient. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

China to U.S.: You Should Talk

Staff / Truthdig Mar 8, 2007 The State Department recently released its regular report of human rights abuses around the world and, as expected, listed China as one of the worst offenders. But Beijing fired back with its own report and a long list U.S. violations, including everything from disregard for civilian casualties to treating racial minorities as an underclass. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Egyptian Blogger Faces 4 Years in Prison

Staff / Truthdig Feb 24, 2007 Free-speech and human rights groups are decrying an Egyptian court's decision to jail blogger Abdel Karim Suleiman for criticizing Islam and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on his online forum. Critics and fellow bloggers fear Suleiman's four-year sentence will set the stage for more arrests and fewer alternatives to state-controlled media outlets in his country. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Israeli Bombing ‘Broke U.S. Arms Deal Terms’

Staff / Truthdig Jan 30, 2007 A preliminary investigation by the State Department has found that Israel's cluster bombing of civilian areas of Lebanon violated terms of an arms agreement with the United States. Israel receives roughly $2 billion annually in military assistance from the U.S., but Washington places classified conditions on how American munitions can be used. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Report: EU Nations Knew of CIA Abductions

Staff / Truthdig Jan 24, 2007 A damning report making its way through the European Union Parliament says a number of EU countries knew of CIA abductions and operations in Europe related to the practice of extraordinary rendition, including more than 1,000 covert flights over European airspace. The report also says the UK, Italy and Poland resisted the investigation. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )