Free Republic

A Swiss judge has issued an arrest warrant for the former head of Iran's secret police for his role in the killing of a leading Iranian dissident 16 years ago. Ali Fallahian is charged with masterminding the assassination of Kazem Rajavi, a renowned human rights advocate, near Geneva in April 1990. According to a report in Lausanne-based newspaper Le Matin Dimanche, the international arrest warrant was issued by Swiss investigating magistrate Jacques Antenen on March 20. It called on law enforcement agencies to arrest Fallahian – who for years headed Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) and is currently...

Venezuelan authorities and pro-government armed groups have committed widespread abuses since the July 28, 2024 presidential elections that officials said Nicolás Maduro had won, despite substantial evidence to the contrary. The Venezuelan government has killed, tortured, detained, and forcefully disappeared people seeking democratic change and many others have fled the country. Governments should support accountability efforts for grave human rights violations in Venezuela, call on Venezuelan authorities to release people arbitrarily detained, disclose the whereabouts of those subjected to enforced disappearances, and expand access to international protection for Venezuelans fleeing repression. (Washington, DC) – Venezuelan authorities and pro-government armed groups...

Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro, who has been seized by US special forces after more than a decade in power, ruled with an iron fist while seeking to portray himself as a humble man of the people. During months in the crosshairs of US President Donald Trump, who accused him of being a drug trafficker, the 63-year-old former bus driver deflected pressure by dancing to techno music at near-daily rallies, always broadcast live, as he chanted the mantra “No war, yes peace!” — in English. But for many Venezuelans, Maduro was no kindly pacifist. Seven million compatriots emigrated on his watch amid...