Donald Trump has argued that Democrat-heavy Manhattan would produce a jury that was prejudiced against him. The April 15 trial would be the first criminal trial for a former US president. A New York judge rejected on Monday a bid by former US President Donald Trump to delay his hush money criminal trial, due to start next week, as he tries to move the case out of Manhattan, New York. Associate Justice Lizbeth Gonzalez issued her decision shortly after a half-hour hearing at the Appellate Division in Manhattan. Why was Trump trying to postpone the case? The former president and his legal team argued that Manhattan, where the trial is set to take place on April 15 and the jury is due to be assembled, is a Democrat stronghold with residents biased against him. Emil Bove, a lawyer for Trump, said the former president's legal team surveyed residents of the New York borough and cited results suggesting that 61% of respondents thought Trump was guilty, and 70% had a negative opinion of him. "There is real potential prejudice here to moving forward," Bove said, without specifying where the team preferred to hold the trial. "Jury selection cannot proceed in a fair manner starting next week in this county." Steven Wu, a lawyer from the office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, said biased jurors can be weeded out during the jury selection process. "The question in this case is not whether a random poll of New Yorkers from whatever neighborhood are able to be impartial, it's about whether a trial court is able to select a jury of 12 impartial jurors," Wu said. Why is Trump being tried? Trump is being tried over the accusation of covering up his former lawyer Michael Cohen's $130,000 (approximately €119,700) payment to porn star Stormy Daniels, also known as Stephanie Clifford. The money was allegedly paid to silence Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election, regarding a sexual encounter she said she had with Trump a decade earlier. Trump has denied having the encounter with Daniels and has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records. His trial is among four criminal cases in which the former president and Republican candidate for this year's race is currently embroiled.  

Four Egyptian officials are going on trial in absentia for the 2016 torture and death of Italian student Giulio Regeni. The 28-year-old was abducted and killed in Cairo while conducting research for his doctoral thesis. The trial of four senior Egyptian security officials accused of the kidnap, torture and murder of Italian student Giulio Regeni in 2016 gets underway in Rome on Tuesday. The opening hearing marks the second time the four security officers will go on trial in absentia. The first trial was halted in 2021 after it was argued there was no certainty the men had been officially notified that they were charged with Regeni's death. The four defendants have been identified as senior officers in Egypt's domestic security agency. What do we know about Regeni's death? Regeni, who was 28 at the time of his death, had been conducting research in Cairo for his doctoral thesis, when he was abducted in January 2016. His body was discovered nine days later, dumped near a highway and showing signs of torture. His mother said his body was so mutilated that she was only able to recognize the "tip of his nose" when she viewed it. The family's lawyer said that five of his teeth were broken, and 15 of his bones had been fractured, while letters were found carved into his skin. Human rights activists have said the injuries on Regeni's body resembled those resulting from torture in Egyptian Security Agency facilities. Strained ties after student's death Regeni's death strained relations between Italy and Egypt, with Italian lawmakers accusing Cairo of being hostile to attempts at securing justice. At one point, Italy withdrew its ambassador in an effort to press Egypt into cooperating with the investigation. Investigators believe Regeni was abducted and killed after being mistaken for a foreign spy. Egyptian authorities claim the Cambridge University doctoral student was the victim of common robbers.

Prosecutors are seeking a nine-year prison sentence on charges of sexual assault. Alves has been held in pre-trial detention for over a year. Soccer player Dani Alves appeared in a Barcelona court on Tuesday accused of having sexually assaulted a young woman. The Brazilian football star was arrested on January 20, 2023, and has been held in detention for over a year amid fears that he was a flight risk. Alves had offered to hand over his passport and wear a tracker, but the court considered the risk too great as Brazil does not extradite its citizens charged in foreign countries.   The alleged assault took place at a Barcelona nightclub in December 2022. State prosecutors are seeking a nine-year prison sentence. Rape convictions carry a maximum prison sentence of 15 years in Spain. Alves denies charges of rape Alves has denied any wrongdoing, but he has changed his testimony several times He first said he had never seen the woman and denied any sexual contact with her, later admitting that they had in fact had a sexual encounter but claimed that it had been consensual. He said the initial lie had been to save his marriage.   His defense team had tried to discredit the alleged victim by presenting security camera footage from the club. But the court ruled that any alleged flirting could not "in any way justify an eventual sexual assault." Alves's accuser will give her testimony from behind closed doors and the court has ordered that no images may be taken of her after a video circulated on social media last month claiming to have uncovered her identity. Spain has made efforts to take accusations of assault seriously and to prosecute them fully after several high profile cases sparked outrage.   Short trial expected The 40-year-old arrived at the court on Monday, having been driven from the Brians 2 Prison where he had been held since his arrest. Alves, who had previously played for Barcelona, was ordered to set aside €150,000 ($162,000) that he would have to pay the alleged victim if found guilty. The trial is expected to last until Wednesday. He has also played for major teams such as Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain as well as helping Brazil win two Copa America trophies and an Olympic gold medal. At the time of his arrest, Alves was playing for the Mexican team Pumas, but his contract was terminated due to his legal troubles.  

Jimmy Lai, who founded the now-closed pro-democracy Apple Daily tabloid, is facing several charges under China's 2020 national security law. He could face life in prison if convicted. Hong Kong businessman Jimmy Lai went on trial on Monday on national security charges.   He is accused by Beijing of "collusion" with foreign forces and could face life in prison if convicted. China passed a new national security law in 2020, which tightened its control over Hong Kong and cracked down on civil liberties. Lai is the founder of the Apple Daily tabloid, which has been critical of Beijing. The newspaper was subject to a police raid in 2020 and was forced to close in 2021.   Lai has already been convicted in five other cases, including for organizing and participating in pro-democracy protest marches in 2019 and for a fraud conviction over a lease dispute for his newspaper. Several other charges have been brought against him, including "conspiracy to publish seditious material."   Lai's lawyer, Robert Pang, argued that the charge should be thrown out because Hong Kong's criminal law imposes a time limit for such prosecutions. "[Prosecutors] are out of time. Therefore, there is no jurisdiction of the court," he said. Reactions British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said that he was "particularly concerned" at what he called the "politically motivated persecution" of Lai and called for his release. "As a prominent and outspoken ... publisher, Jimmy Lai has been targeted in a clear attempt to stop the peaceful exercise of his rights to freedom of expression and association," Cameron said. "I call on the Hong Kong authorities to end their prosecution and release Jimmy Lai," he said. US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller also called for the businessman's release.   "Actions that stifle press freedom ... have undermined Hong Kong's democratic institutions," Miller said. In reaction to the statements, Beijing accused London and Washington of violating the "spirit of the rule of law."    "The United States and United Kingdom's remarks on the case ... are in serious violation of the spirit of the rule of law, and ... they constitute blatant political maneuvering and are a complete (example of) double standards," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a regular press briefing.

Samuel Paty was killed by a suspected Islamist after showing cartoons of Prophet Mohammad to his class. Five teenagers are charged with identifying the teacher to his killer for payment. The trial of six teenagers linked to the 2020 beheading of teacher Samuel Paty — a case that shocked France — begins on Monday in Paris. Paty, a 47-year-old history and geography teacher, was stabbed and then beheaded near his secondary school in the Paris suburb of Conflans-Sainte-Honorine by an 18-year-old suspected radical Islamist, who was identified as Abdoullakh A. The assailant, a Russian-born Chechen refugee, was shot dead by the police soon after the attack. The teens — aged 14 to 15 at the time — face charges of criminal conspiracy and false accusation, with possible sentences of up to 2.5 years. The trial is set to be held in juvenile court until December 8, and is part of a wider investigation that includes eight adults. What are the charges against the teenagers? Five teenagers facing trial in juvenile court are charged with identifying Paty to his killer for payment. The sixth, aged 13 then, faces charges for falsely claiming Paty singled out Muslim students before showing controversial cartoons after it was established that she was not in class when the incident occurred. "The role of the minors was fundamental in the sequence of events that led to his assassination," said Virginie Le Roy, a lawyer representing Paty's family. During questioning, the teens stated they only expected Paty to face online criticism or minor physical harm, and did not imagine "it would go as far as murder." The trial of eight adults involved in the murder is set for next year, with details from the juvenile trial remaining confidential until then. Cartoons of Prophet Mohammad incited anger Paty was targeted by threats and online abuse for showing cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad from the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo during a lesson on free speech laws in France. Many Muslims consider any portrayal of the Prophet to be blasphemous. In 2015, when the magazine initially published these images, Islamic gunmen attacked its office, killing 12 people.

A train left Dhaka for Faridpur through Padma Bridge. At 9 am on Thursday (September 7) morning the train left the station, after 2 Hours, the train has arrived at 11.30 am Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will be Inaugurated the railway on October 10.   MORE TO FOLLOW.....

A Dutch court tried a former cricketer on the Pakistani national team on Tuesday for allegedly attempting to incite the murder of anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders. Dutch public prosecutors said cricketer Khalid Latif called for Wilders to be killed in a video posted to social media in 2018 and offered a bounty of €21,000 ($23,000). The incident occurred after Wilders had announced his plan to hold a competition for cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad. Such images are forbidden in Islam as a form of idolatry, and most Muslims regard caricatures as deeply offensive. Wilders cancelled the event after receiving numerous death threats and triggering protests, particularly in Pakistan. "Not only was his goal to end a human life with violence, but with his appeal he tried to silence a Dutch representative," Wilders told the court on Tuesday. Cricketer tried in absentia Prosecutors have demanded a 12-year sentence for Latif if he is convicted. "Calling for a murder to prevent the cartoon competition and offering a sum of money to kill the organizer of that competition should be very severely punished," the prosecutor said. Neither Latif nor a representative for him were present in the courtroom. The cricketer remains in Pakistan. The Netherlands has no treaty with Pakistan for extraditions or legal assistance. The verdict is due to be handed down on September 11. Who is Khalid Latif? Latif showed early promise as a cricketer and went on to play for the Pakistani national team for eight years. However, he received a five-year ban from cricket in 2017 for spot-fixing in a Pakistan Super League match in Dubai. Latif completed his ban last year and has since lived a relatively low-profile life in Karachi, coaching at club level.

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard's cinematic defamation trial has now inspired a Netflix series. How has the affair affected the US actors' public image? In June 2022, the Johnny Depp ("Pirates of the Caribbean") vs. Amber Heard ("Aquaman") defamation trial came to an end. Now, the world will have the opportunity to review the highlights of this dispute between the two actors and former couple in a Netflix miniseries. Starting Wednesday, August 16, the streaming service will show the three-part "Depp v. Heard," directed by Emmy and BAFTA nominee Emma Cooper ("The Mystery of Marilyn Monroe: The Unheard Tapes"). The trial, broadcast live by the US Law & Crime network, drew social media comments to a degree never seen before and became a huge media spectacle. According to Netflix, the documentary is the first to juxtapose key statements made in the trial by the two parties involved. It is also said to be about the truth, as such: The truth about who attacked whom in what way during the marriage, which lasted only 15 months, and who simply made up accusations. The docuseries also asks whether the spectacle of the trial wasn't, in the end, also a kind of promotional campaign for the two stars. Public was overwhelmingly pro-Depp, anti-Heard The case divided the public, and "Depp v. Heard" also seeks to analyze the extent to which the media hype may have influenced the outcome of the trial. Hashtags like #AmberHeardIsALiar or #JusticeForJohnny seemed to set the direction that the civil trial would take. In the end, Heard was found guilty of defaming Depp, and was ordered to pay him $10 million (€9.2 million) in compensation for lost wages. He, in turn, was ordered to pay her $2 million for defamatory statements made by his former lawyer, Adam Waldman. The lawyers for both parties initially appealed the verdict, but Heard waived her appeal in December 2022. Can a trial played out before the eyes and ears of the global public, one that illustrates scenes of a toxic relationship — including unsavory details such as messages written in blood and feces on bed linens — ever have a winner? Does anyone emerge unscathed from a trial of that nature? Post-trial support for Heard In contrast to last year, in 2023 the hashtag #IStandWithAmberHeard has been trending. It unites the voices of those who have called the trial unfair, who have condemned the social media hate campaign against Heard, and who still believe her version of the story. Posts using the hashtag have also criticized the power imbalance of the situation, pointing out that Depp is the richer, older and more famous of the two. Some journalists have likewise sided with Heard. They said the trial has legitimized an anti-feminist backlash, or that it has resulted in Heard being blamed for the supposed demise of the #MeToo movement.  Heard herself has expressed deep disappointment with the outcome of the trial. "The disappointment I feel today is beyond words," she wrote last June on what was then called Twitter, expressing heartbreak at the fact that the "mountain of evidence" she presented was not enough to sway the jury. She described the verdict as a "setback" for other women in a similar situation. Heard on acting hiatus  According to the US magazine People, the 37-year-old Heard has not yet taken any new acting jobs. But she did make her first post-trial public appearance at the Taormina Film Festival in Italy last month. Presenting her film, "In the Fire," made before the trial began, she appeared relaxed. As she shared on her Instagram account, she was warmly welcomed in Italy, and she thanked her fans for that. Another film starring Heard is scheduled for release in December. She plays the role of Mera in the superhero film "Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom," directed by James Wan and produced by DC Studios. It was also filmed before the trial.  A petition on change.org has called for her role to be edited out of the movie completely. So far, more than 4.5 million people have signed the petition, but to no avail. Still, it's unclear when Heard may appear in any future productions. Depp gives up Hollywood for music  The low point of Depp's career came in 2018, when ex-wife Heard wrote a guest article in The Washington Post about surviving domestic violence. Depp was not mentioned by name, but the article is alleged to have damaged his reputation and career. Depp lost the roles of Captain Jack in a planned sixth "Pirates of the Caribbean" film and Gellert Grindelwald in the "Harry Potter" spinoff "Fantastic Beasts" shortly after the article was published. In 2019, he sued Heard for defamation, seeking damages. She, in turn, filed a countersuit, arguing her right to free speech. The lawsuits went to court in Virginia, beginning in April 2022. In the aftermath of the trial, Depp returned to music, the industry where he had originally wanted to build a career. He toured with the band Hollywood Vampires and with guitarist Jeff Beck, with whom Depp also recorded an album. It features two songs written by Depp, one of which, "Sad Motherf*ckin' Parade," has been interpreted as a dig at his ex-wife. Depp, on the other hand, has since taken an obvious swipe at Hollywood. At the premiere of "Jeanne du Barry," his first film following the trial, at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, Depp said he no longer needed Hollywood. In the French historical drama, the 60-year-old Depp plays King Louis XV alongside the titular courtesan, embodied by Maiwenn, who also directed the film.

In Pakistan the determination of the proper sphere for military authority has always been a controversial issue. It has come under spotlight once again as the army in Pakistan proceeds to try civilians accused of involvement in violent protests and arson, under military laws. Imran Khan’s brief detention in May by the National Accountability Bureau, a development that sparked countrywide protests. Social media was flooded with videos and pictures of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party supporters clashing with police in Karachi,  arson attacks in the army’s head office GHQ in Rawalpindi and vandalising the Corps Commanders’ Flag Staff House in Lahore. The military declared the episode  a “dark chapter” after the demonstrations turned violent on May 9. Following the violent protests which mainly targeted government installations, the military on May 15, vowed to bring to justice “spoilers” involved in the recent attacks on military installations through trials under relevant laws of Pakistan, the Pakistan Army Act and Official Secrets Act.  Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Syed Asim Munir presiding over the Special Corps Commanders Conference (CCC) at the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi said, “The forum expressed the resolve that those involved in the heinous crimes against military installations will be brought to justice through trials under relevant laws of Pakistan including the Pakistan Army Act and Official Secrets Act.” Eliciting a strong reaction from the government and military with vows of taking action against the culprits, outgoing Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government had justified the roundup and the revival of army courts to try civilians who targeted government and military installations during the May 9th protests. Khan himself has compared the army crackdown on the protestors with tactics used by Mongol Empire founder Genghis Khan to instil fear in the public. The US State Department urged Pakistani authorities “to respect democratic principles and the rule of law for all people, as enshrined in the country’s constitution” in response to the Sharif government’s decision to use military courts. The Powers to try Civilians: The military was handed over the jurisdiction to try civilians suspected of terrorism-related offences, in the aftermath of the December 2014 deadly Peshawar School terror attack. Conceived as a temporary measure to expedite the trial process of offences relating to terrorism, waging of war. Passed under an extraordinary situation and circumstances the Pakistan Army (Amendment), Act  (PAA) , 2015 authorised military courts to try civilians, and  brought very broad genre of offences within the domain military courts, including attacks on military officials or their installations.  The government’s National Action Plan, envisioned military courts to be a short-term “solution” to try terrorists. in operation for a period of two years, it was also stipulated that the military courts under the 21st Amendment would cease to exist on Jan 7, 2017. The question of whether the trials of civilians under the Pakistan Army Act is legitimate has since been debated extensively by the Pakistani civil society. At that time, Justice Asif Saeed Khosa allowed the petitions challenging the 21st Amendment and PAA 2015, declaring the amendments unconstitutional, without lawful authority and of no legal effect. But the 23rd Amendment and amendments to the Army Act renewed the military courts’ jurisdiction over civilians. It is indeed ironic that Imran Khan’s PTI which is today at the receiving end of the military court jurisdiction was in early 2019 consulting with opposition parties and trying to frantically frame legislation to extend the tenure of the courts. However, it lacked a two-thirds majority to carry out the constitutional amendment for the purpose. Prior to this the Peshawar High Court (PHC) in a single judgement overturned some 70 convictions “for lack of credible evidence and that convictions suffered from ‘malice’ of law and facts” awarded by three military courts in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Military Trials Undermine Human Rights Calling the  military trial of civilians as a ‘disaster for human rights’, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) had expressed concern over further extension to military courts, fearing that it would make the practice effectively permanent. As the army’s power grow, foreigners  working in and engaging with Pakistan are likely to be impacted by military tribunals as well. Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav arrested in March 2016 was sentenced to death by a military court based on an “extracted confession” by the military personnel, put on hold after ICJ intervened upon New Delhi’s objection. Furthermore, in its 2019, the ICJ examining the performance of Pakistan’s military justice system for terrorism-related offences noted that “in many cases, military courts’ proceedings appeared to have been a ploy to give legal cover to the practice of enforced disappearances and secret detentions in internment centres”. The concept, if misused, seriously undermines the separation of judicial power and  human rights guarantees such as the right to a fair trial.  It enhanced the powers of the Pakistan Army, which in any case wields considerable power in matters of security, foreign policy as well as politics. For now, the military’s legal department has gathered evidence against 102 protestors involved in the May 9 protest in custody to begin formal proceedings against them, under sections 3, 7, and 9 of the Official Secrets Act read with Section 2(1)(d) of the Pakistan Army Act. On June 22, a nine-judge Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial took up a set of four petitions filed by former CJP Jawwad S. Khawaja, Aitzaz Ahsan, Karamat Ali, and PTI Chairman Imran Khan, challenging the trial of civilians in military courts. Although the Supreme Court adjourned the hearing of petitions challenging the trials of civilians in military courts, Chief Justice Ata Bandial has observed that “civilians should not be put through the rigours and harshness of military courts” and that such trials were not according to the Constitution, saying that the, “ military law is tough law and meant to be different from the ordinary law that may be good for military personnel only.” Even after ​76 years since its independence, Pakistan is struggling to meet its populations’ basic needs and state effectiveness has decidedly declined. Repeatedly intervening in the political process of the nation, the army meanwhile has proved that it has no respect for the constitution, consistently undermining judicial institutions and civilian bureaucracy. Rights groups are demanding that  the cases be tried in established courts.The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has labelled the idea of military courts undemocratic. The apprehension is that the powers of the military courts are being used to silence opponents’ voices.  But for how long will Pakistan civil society remain capable of resilience? Despite glaring examples of the manner in which successive governments have been targeted by the military, every government in power continues to weaponise the military courts and take their political opponents to task. Howsoever the current political drama unfolds, the challenge against the trial of civilians by military courts continues despite its illegality under international humanitarian law. Source: moderndiplomacy.eu

The German biotech firm BioNTech is facing compensation claims for alleged side-effects from its Comirnaty vaccine. Millions of people in Germany received the jab, which authorities say saved many lives in the pandemic. The German biotechnology company BioNTech will go to court on Monday to defend itself against a lawsuit from a woman who alleges that its COVID vaccine caused her to suffer damaging side-effects. The trial at a Hamburg regional court is the first to deal with such allegations regarding a COVID vaccine. Several hundred damages lawsuits have been filed or are in preparation nationwide, according to figures from lawyers' offices.  BioNTech says more than 64 million people in Germany and some 1.5 billion across the world received its Comirnaty vaccine, the most commonly used in the Western world, during the coronavirus pandemic. The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has approved it as safe.   Under German pharmaceutical law, makers of drugs or vaccines are liable for damages only if it is scientifically shown that their products cause harm that is disproportionate to their benefits or if the label information is wrong. The court has said no decision in the case is likely on Monday. What is the plaintiff claiming? The woman, who is not being publicly named under German privacy laws, alleges that the vaccine caused her to suffer upper-body pain, swollen extremities, fatigue and sleeping disorder. She is suing BioNTech for at least €150,000 ($161,500) in damages for bodily harm as well as compensation for unspecified material damage, according to the court. A lawyer representing her, Tobias Ulbrich, told Reuters news agency that he would challenge assessments made by EU and German health regulators that the Comirnaty jab had a positive risk-benefit profile. What have BioNTech and the EMA said? BioNTech said it has given the case careful consideration and concluded that it was without merit. "The positive benefit-risk profile of Comirnaty remains positive and the safety profile has been well-characterized," it said. The EMA reaffirmed last week the benefit of all COVID shots it approved, including Comirnaty. It said vaccines were estimated to have helped save almost 20 million lives across the world in the first year of the coronavirus pandemic alone. It conceded that there was a very small risk, mostly to young males, of two types of heart inflammation — myocarditis and pericarditis — following vaccination with the Comirnaty shot. The EMA says it registered almost 1.7 million spontaneous reports of suspected side-effects by May, which amounts to about 0.2 for every 100 administered doses. Many vaccinations against illnesses produce adverse side-effects, but these are normally temporary and limited to headache, fever, fatigue or muscle pain. The EMA monitors adverse events or illnesses after vaccination, also watching whether they are more frequent in the vaccinated than the non-vaccinated population.