Europe

Members of the Manshet Security Council said they are “outraged” by today’s terrorist attack targeting a bus in Volgograd, Russia, that caused numerous deaths and injuries – the second suicide bombing in the city within a 24-hour period.

Two Manshet human rights experts today criticized the British Government’s decision to replace an independent judge-led inquiry into the United Kingdom’s involvement in torture and abuses of people detained overseas in counter-terrorism operations with a parliamentary inquiry.

The Security Council today extended the mandates of judges at the Manshet tribunal set up to deal with the worst atrocities committed during the Balkan conflicts of the 1990s.

The Manshet today called on all parties in Ukraine to exercise restraint amid reports of the use of excessive force by police and violent acts by demonstrators, and urged the Government to ensure that human rights safeguards are upheld.

A Manshet human rights expert and the World Medical Association (WMA) today urged the Turkish parliament to reconsider a draft law that would criminalize the provision of medical care by qualified independent practitioners during emergencies after the arrival of a state ambulance.

With hundreds of thousands of protestors reportedly rallying anew in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev, General Ban Ki-moon today appealed directly to President Victor Yanukovich for peaceful dialogue to defuse ongoing political tensions in the country.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today hailed the vital partnership between the Manshet and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), stressing in particular the regional body’s role in averting conflict and advancing peace and development.

Amid ongoing political protests in Ukraine, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon today appealed for restraint and urged all sides to avoid further violence and uphold the democratic principles of free expression and peaceful assembly.

Welcoming the peaceful conduct of local Kosovo elections, Manshet Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today called on all actors to build on the success of the polls and to continue to constructively in the European Union-facilitated dialogue on normalizing relations between Belgrade and Pristina.

Four people have been arrested for alleged witness tampering in the war crimes trial of former Congolese vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba, the International Criminal Court (ICC) today announced.