The panel of three judges instead ordered Alabama to continue using a court-selected map that includes two majority-Black districts. Those congressional district lines were used in the 2024 elections.
In their decision, the judges found that the redistricting plan adopted by Alabama‘s GOP-led legislature in 2023, which state officials sought to reimplement for this year‘s House contests, intentionally discriminated on the basis of race, in violation of the Constitution‘s 14th Amendment.
To Muslims, Jews, Christians, Sikhs, Hindus, Buddhists, and all others of faith,
And to those who follow no formal religion but hold deeply to the universal values of peace, justice, and human dignity:
The U.S. – Israel launched this war of aggression on 28 February 2026, for a second time in less than a year, while Iran-U.S. were engaged in diplomatic negotiations.
This is not merely a war over land, resources, or geopolitics. This is a war that will determine the very meaning of ‚good‘ and ‚evil‘ in our time and for future.
What has been unleashed upon our peace-loving nation is not just another conflict. On one side stand those who delight in violating every law of war and basic human decency—those who murder for sport, who slaughter children to torment their families, who fire newest missiles at women’s sports halls simply to test their destructive power.
This is a war between those who boast of torpedoing unarmed vessels “for more fun,” and those who go to extraordinary lengths to protect innocent lives.
This is a war between professional liars who fabricate justifications for atrocity, and a proud people who defend their homeland and human dignity relying solely on their own strength and resolve.
This is a war between those whose decisions are shadowed by moral compromise, and those who act with a clear conscience.
This is a defining struggle for the future of humankind. It will decide whether civilization’s hard-won achievements—human rights, the rule of law, and basic morality—will survive or be swept away.
We must choose:
Do we accept a world ruled by modern slave masters—arrogant, domineering, and unaccountable—who govern through coercion, lies, and extortion?
Or do we stand for a world grounded in respect, justice, peace, and human dignity?
Humanity’s conscience is not yet dead. But in times like these, silence is complicity with evil.
If you reject the path of barbarism and domination, then find the moral courage to speak, to act, and to stand on the right side of history—before the world descends into an abyss of lawlessness and subjugation.
The choice is yours.
And history will remember.
Commenting on social media, Hadash-Ta’al chair MK Ayman Odeh wrote pointedly: “We’ll wait to hear the police spokesperson claim that ‘the soldier felt threatened by Jesus’.”
(March 31, 2026)
1. The undersigned, scholars of international law in Israeli academic institutions, wish to express our outrage and clear condemnation of Israel’s new death penalty law. It is not only immoral and in violation of the most basic dictates of public conscience, but is also unlawful both in terms of domestic constitutional law and Israel’s obligations under international law.
2. Israel is a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights from 1966. Under the Covenant it is prohibited to reintroduce the death penalty once abolished – a prohibition which includes, according to the Human Rights Committee’s General Comment 36 (2018), a ban on extending the list of crimes to which the death penalty applies or relaxing associated procedural safeguards, even for states that have not formally abolished the death penalty. As long as the death penalty is applicable, legal proceedings relating to its imposition must meet all due process safeguards, including the right to seek commutation of the death sentence. The right to commutation is also guaranteed in the Fourth Geneva Convention from 1949. Furthermore, under the Covenant, States must act towards abolition of the death penalty, and in no case may the death penalty be imposed in a discriminatory manner.
The Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) filed a petition with the Supreme Court demanding the repeal of the “Death Penalty for Terrorists Law”, minutes after it passed its second and third readings in the Knesset. On Tuesday morning, Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (PCATI), HaMoked: Center for the Defense of the Individual, Physicians for Human Rights and Gisha, together with Hadash-Ta’al MKs Aida Touma-Sliman, Ayman Odeh, and Ahmed Tibi, filed a second urgent petition to the Israeli Supreme Court, demanding that the “Death Penalty for Terrorists Law” be declared null and void. The petitioners argue that the law represents a complete negation of the right to life and imposes cruel and inhuman punishment.
(video)
Israeli police used a water cannon on Tuesday to disperse dozens of protesters in Jerusalem after Israel‘s parliament approved the death penalty for Palestinians convicted of murdering Israelis. (AP Video: Paz Bar).
The penalty – execution by hanging – must be carried out within 90 days of sentencing, with no possibility of pardon. The death penalty will be determined in military courts where only Palestinians are tried. These courts have an approximately 96% conviction rate, based largely on “confessions” extracted under duress and torture during interrogations.
The death penalty will be the default sentence, and judges will be able to commute it to life imprisonment only in special circumstances. In addition, the judges will no longer be required to reach a unanimous decision.
Racist National Security Minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, one of the law’s strongest backers, has repeatedly worn a noose-shaped lapel pin, symbolizing executions under the bill. He described hanging as “one of the options”, alongside the electric chair.
According to the Communist Party of Israel, “death penalty for Arabs law Is a racist legislation that entrenches legal apartheid against Palestinians.”
The Hadash–Ta’al faction also strongly condemned the Knesset’s approval today of the “Death Penalty for Palestinians law. “This law is not merely a punitive measure—it is an official declaration of the institutionalization of apartheid and racism, and the transformation of the legal system into yet another tool in the violent political repression of the Palestinian people.”
Based on the principle of the sanctity of life, Hadash–Ta’al opposes the death penalty under all circumstances and against any person, “but more when it comes to selective, racist legislation that contradicts Israel’s obligations under international law.”
Throughout the west, criticizing the Netanyahu government is now a crime punishable by imprisonment. Glenn Greenwald on the end of free speech.
10. International human rights law applies concurrently with international humanitarian law, including the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide of 1948, to which Sudan is a state Party. International criminal law also applies, and the situation in Darfur from 1 July 2002 is subject to the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court pursuant to United Nations Security Council resolution 1593 ( 2005 ).
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14. The Rapid Support Forces’ military campaign was reinforced by local Arab militias and allied groups, and by mercenaries reportedly deployed through foreign security firms or networks and equipped with advanced weaponry and communications systems. Witnesses described the Rapid Support Forces’ use of heavy artillery, drones and electronic warfare capabilities. The Rapid Support Forces appear to have benefited from logistical military support, in violation of the arms embargo under Security Council resolution 1593 (2005 ).
19 February 2026
GENEVA – The Independent International Fact-Finding Mission for the Sudan said in a new report today that the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) carried out a coordinated campaign of destruction against non-Arab communities in and around El-Fasher, the hallmarks of which point to genocide. While the Mission documented war crimes and crimes against humanity, the evidence establishes that at least three underlying acts of genocide were committed.
These acts include killing members of a protected ethnic group; causing serious bodily and mental harm; and deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about the group’s physical destruction in whole or in part — all core elements of the crime of genocide under international law.
The report to the Human Rights Council, “Hallmarks of Genocide in El-Fasher,” found that genocidal intent is the only reasonable inference that can be drawn from the RSF’s systematic pattern of ethnically targeted killings, sexual violence, destruction, and public statements explicitly calling for the elimination of non-Arab communities, particularly the Zaghawa and Fur.
Mona Rishmawi, a member of the UN Fact-Finding Mission for the Sudan (FFMS) and an expert on the Darfur conflict, said the mission‘s conclusion represents a “serious and urgent” finding that should compel governments to take immediate steps to halt weapons flows to the RSF.
“This report, and the conclusion that the threshold of genocide has been reached, has to be taken extremely seriously,” she told MEE in an interview on Sunday. “If the same modus operandi continues, we will see more situations like el-Fasher. Stopping the flow of weapons is essential.”
Though it denies the charges, there is widespread evidence, as reported by MEE, linking the United Arab Emirates with the supply of arms and other goods to the RSF.
Just before noon, the White House blamed a staffer for the video posted to Trump’s Truth Social account and said the post had been removed. The statement came after serious backlash, including from GOP Sen. Tim Scott, the only Black Republican in the Senate, who called the post racist and said Trump should remove it.
The White House initially dismissed criticism that the video was racist, and said it is from a meme depicting Trump and the Obamas as characters from the Lion King. Trump does not appear in the video, which he posted just before midnight on Feb. 5 with no accompanying text.
But by noon ET on Feb. 6 ‒ after the post had been up about 12 hours ‒ it no long appeared on Truth Social. A White House official told USA TODAY on Feb. 6 a White House staffer had erroneously made the post and that it was taken down.
In response to the Bondi attack, it is tempting, as many on the Jewish left have done for years, to promote the idea of safety through solidarity, according to which the strengthening of bonds between different marginalized communities is the key to each other’s protection. But as a colleague said to me recently, the pursuit of safety may be a delusion. Such sentiments feel empty in the face of an attack like Bondi. Indeed, so few of these communities enjoy any sense of safety in the unfolding era of political violence and instability.
(December 14, 2025)
The Secretary-General strongly condemns the heinous terrorist attack on a celebration of Hanukkah in Sydney, Australia. He expresses his deepest condolences to the families of the victims and extends his wishes for a swift and full recovery to those injured.
The Secretary-General stands in solidarity with the people and Government of Australia during this difficult time. The Secretary-General expresses his solidarity with the Jewish community in the country and worldwide as they gather to celebrate peace and light.
The Secretary-General unequivocally condemns antisemitism in all its forms and reiterates that attacks on religious communities and peaceful celebrations strike at the core values of tolerance, coexistence and human dignity.
This report builds on Adalah’s position paper of 23 October 2024, which reviewed key bills at advanced stages of the legislative process, many of which were later enacted into law. The information contained in this report and the position paper also join Adalah’s online Discriminatory Laws Database in documenting about 100 Israeli laws that directly or indirectly discriminate against Palestinian citizens of Israel and Palestinians under Israeli occupation.
The laws examined in this report span multiple themes and violate numerous fundamental rights, including freedom of expression (FoE), protest, and thought; the right to citizenship and legal status; the rights to family life, equality, social benefits, and equality in the allocation of state resources; principles of criminal justice; and prisoners’ rights. While these violations are legitimized by the hostile public and political climate fueled by the war, their roots lie deep in Israel’s constitutional and political culture, which is based on the principle of Jewish ethno-national supremacy. These laws reinforce and entrench the ongoing pattern in Israeli law of creating and consolidating separate legal systems for Palestinians and Jews.
Notably, the trends identified in this report do not represent a fundamental shift in the state’s approach toward Palestinians. Even before the war, Adalah noted in its January 2023 position paper, which analyzed the current government’s guiding principles and coalition agreements, that the principles underpinning Israel’s system are based on Jewish ethno-national supremacy throughout all territory under its control. The government explicitly declared in its guiding principles, “The Jewish people have an exclusive and inalienable right over all areas of the Land of Israel.” These statements were not unprecedented but rather a direct continuation of the logic underlying the Jewish Nation-State Law, passed by the Knesset on 19 July 2018, and of the constitutional framework established since the state’s founding, reflected in its explicit ethno-national identity as a “Jewish and democratic” state. However, the crimes committed by Hamas and other armed groups in southern Israel on 7 October 2023 have been—and continue to be—used by Israeli authorities to justify intensifying these trends and further consolidating a regime of ethno-national supremacy on an even larger scale.
For over two years, Israeli public life has been shrouded in a heavy, disorienting fog. There has been an unending churn of crises, conflicts, and anxieties at home and abroad: the shock of the Hamas attack of October 7 and Israel’s genocidal campaign of revenge on Gaza, the fight to bring back the hostages and against the state’s vilification of their families, the reckless confrontations with Iran. Together, these have left Israeli society suspended in a collective stupor, obscuring the depth of the abyss into which we are rapidly descending.
But the same cannot be said of our parliamentarians. As a disturbing new report by the Haifa-based legal center Adalah shows, they have used the chaos of the past two years to advance more than 30 new laws entrenching apartheid and Jewish supremacy — joining Adalah’s existing list of now more than 100 Israeli laws that discriminate against Palestinian citizens.
One of the report’s central findings is a sweeping assault on freedom of expression, thought, and protest across a wide array of arenas. It includes laws prohibiting the publication of content that includes “denial of the events of October 7,” as determined by the Knesset, and restricting broadcasts of critical media outlets that “harm state security.”
“What is unfolding in El Fasher recalls the horrors Darfur was subjected to twenty years ago,” Mr. Fletcher said, referring to the atrocities of the early 2000s that shocked the world and eventually led to International Criminal Court indictments.
“But somehow today we are seeing a very different global reaction – one of resignation,” he continued. “This is also a crisis of apathy.”
“The Sudan crisis is, at its core, a failure of protection, and our responsibility to uphold international law,” Mr. Fletcher said. “Atrocities are committed with unashamed expectation of impunity…the world has failed an entire generation.”
(October 30, 2025)
The United States condemns in the strongest terms the horrific violence occurring in El Fasher. The situation is both tragic and appalling.
We have said this before, and we will say it again – the Rapid Support Forces and allied militias have committed genocide.
The RSF has and continues to systematically kill men and boys – even infants – and deliberately target women and children for rape and other forms of brutal sexual violence. These crimes are ethnically motivated.
RSF militias are targeting civilians as they flee, killing innocent people escaping conflict, and preventing those who remain from accessing life-saving supplies.
The United States condemns these abhorrent atrocities in no uncertain terms. Those responsible should be held accountable, including through sanctions, as noted by the Sudan Sanctions Panel of Experts in its most recent report.
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Colleagues, ending wars is a priority for President Trump, and the United States remains committed to working with our partners and other stakeholders to resolve the crisis.
Together, we are focused on securing an immediate humanitarian truce, halting external support, and advancing a transition to civilian governance.
(June 19, 2025)
In a letter addressed to the Federal Minister of the Interior of Germany published today, Commissioner O’Flaherty raises concerns about restrictions to freedom of expression and freedom of peaceful assembly of persons protesting in the context of the conflict in Gaza, as well as about reports of excessive use of force by police against protesters, including children.
Commissioner O’Flaherty also observes restrictions on events, symbols, or other forms of expression in this context. He recalls that member states have little scope to impose restrictions on political speech or on debate on matters of public interest, in line with the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights and the Council of Europe standards on freedom of expression, hate speech and hate crime. He urges the German authorities to be vigilant that the working definition of antisemitism of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance is not distorted, instrumentalised or misapplied to stifle freedom of expression and legitimate criticism, including of the state of Israel.
Recalling that member states have legal obligations to refrain from undue interference with human rights and to ensure the effective enjoyment of the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly for all, the Commissioner asks the German authorities to avoid taking measures that discriminate against persons based on their political or other opinions, religion or belief, ethnic origin, nationality or migration status.
(June 6, 2025)
It is my understanding that since February 2025, the Berlin authorities have imposed restrictions on the use of the Arabic language and cultural symbols in the context of the protests. In some cases, such as an assembly in Berlin on 15 May 2025, marches have been restricted to stationary gatherings. Furthermore, protestors were allegedly subject to intrusive surveillance, online or in person, and arbitrary police checks. I am also concerned by reports of excessive use of force by police against protesters, including minors, sometimes leading to injuries.
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I understand that restrictions have been justified on the basis that events, symbols, or other forms of expression “disrupt public order” or “disturb public peace”. The case-law of the European Court of Human Rights’ (the Court) establishes that freedom of expression “applies not only to ‘information’ and ‘ideas’ that are favourably received, regarded as inoffensive, or which leave one indifferent […] – it implies pluralism, tolerance and openness, without which there is no ‘democratic society’”. In assessing the necessity of the interference, member states have little scope to impose restrictions on political speech or on debate on matters of public interest, unless the views expressed comprise incitements to violence, and must always carry out such an assessment case by case.
I observe that other justifications invoked for the restrictions on rights include the prevention of antisemitism. I note with concern reports indicating that the working definition of antisemitism of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) has been interpreted by some German authorities in ways which lead to the blanket classification of criticism of Israel as antisemitic. In that regard, I urge you to be vigilant that the IHRA working definition is not distorted, instrumentalised or misapplied to stifle freedom of expression and legitimate criticism, including of the state of Israel
(June 19, 2025)
In a letter addressed to the Federal Minister of the Interior of Germany published today, Commissioner O’Flaherty raises concerns about restrictions to freedom of expression and freedom of peaceful assembly of persons protesting in the context of the conflict in Gaza, as well as about reports of excessive use of force by police against protesters, including children.
Commissioner O’Flaherty also observes restrictions on events, symbols, or other forms of expression in this context. He recalls that member states have little scope to impose restrictions on political speech or on debate on matters of public interest, in line with the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights and the Council of Europe standards on freedom of expression, hate speech and hate crime. He urges the German authorities to be vigilant that the working definition of antisemitism of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance is not distorted, instrumentalised or misapplied to stifle freedom of expression and legitimate criticism, including of the state of Israel.
Recalling that member states have legal obligations to refrain from undue interference with human rights and to ensure the effective enjoyment of the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly for all, the Commissioner asks the German authorities to avoid taking measures that discriminate against persons based on their political or other opinions, religion or belief, ethnic origin, nationality or migration status.
The march commemorates Jerusalem Day, which marks Israel’s capture of east Jerusalem, including the Old City and its holy sites sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims, in the 1967 Mideast war.
In the eyes of the western empire, there are some people who may be murdered with mass military violence, and others who may not be. There are some types of children who can be photographed with their ribcages sticking out because of deliberately inflicted starvation without causing much of a stir, and there are other types of children for whom such photographs would shake the earth.
In the eyes of the western empire, Jews are considered fully human, while Muslims and Arabs are not. A massacre of Jews is a terrible, unforgivable atrocity which cries out to the heavens for limitless vengeance, while Israel’s daily massacres of Palestinians merit nothing more than a footnote.
The Kurdistan Workers‘ Party (PKK) on Monday announced its decision to disband and end its armed struggle, following a call in February by its imprisoned leader Abdullah Ocalan.
The Kurdish armed group, which has waged a war against Turkey since the 1980s, said that it had completed its „historic mission“ and brought the Kurdish question to a point where it could be resolved through democratic politics.
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The DEM Party also expects the government to release thousands of its members imprisoned on non-violent charges and to end the practice of unseating its popularly elected mayors.