All posts tagged: petitions

Israel rights group petitions top court to order release of 14 Gaza doctors | Gaza News

Israel rights group petitions top court to order release of 14 Gaza doctors | Gaza News

Published by Sam Flores

Physicians for Human Rights Israel accuses authorities of hindering the rehabilitation of Gaza’s healthcare system. Published On 30 Apr 202630 Apr 2026 An Israeli human rights organisation has petitioned the Supreme Court to demand the immediate release of 14 doctors from Gaza held without charge for more than a year. Physicians for Human Rights-Israel (PHRI) said on Thursday that it filed the petition after the Israeli military’s Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir failed to respond to its request to release the group, which includes paediatricians, orthopaedic specialists and surgeons. Substantial evidence has emerged during more than two years of Israel’s genocidal war against Palestinians in Gaza that the enclave’s healthcare infrastructure has been systematically destroyed. PHRI said the continued detention of doctors is hindering efforts to rehabilitate Gaza’s healthcare system and called on international actors to show solidarity in pushing for their release. Among those in Israeli custody is Dr Hussam Abu Safia, who has been held without charge for nearly 18 months. Safia, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital, was detained in December 2024 when …

Apple Asks Court to Pause App Store Fee Fight While It Petitions Supreme Court in Epic Games Case

Apple Asks Court to Pause App Store Fee Fight While It Petitions Supreme Court in Epic Games Case

Published by skeptic

Apple plans to ask the United States Supreme Court to weigh in on the App Store fee restrictions and contempt of court ruling levied against it in the ongoing Epic Games vs. Apple legal battle. In a filing on April 3 (via TechCrunch), Apple asked the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to hold off on a plan that would see the U.S. Northern District of California decide on a reasonable commission for Apple to charge developers for purchases made from a link in an app. Apple is concerned that the district court will decide on a fee, only to have the Supreme Court then reverse the ruling in its entirety. Apple says that it does not want to make multiple major changes to its ‌App Store‌ fee structure. Instead, Apple proposes that the current no-commission setup remain in place until Apple hears back from the Supreme Court. Developers can currently include links to non-App Store purchase options in their apps and Apple charges no fee from purchases made using those links. Apple wants to continue …

Human Rights Foundation Petitions UN on Behalf of Artist Gao Zhen

Human Rights Foundation Petitions UN on Behalf of Artist Gao Zhen

Published by Jenni Sidey

The Human Rights Foundation has submitted a complaint to a United Nations body that reviews detention cases on behalf of Chinese dissident artist Gao Zhen, seeking a finding that his prolonged detention is arbitrary under international law. Gao, 69, was arrested in China in 2024 on “suspicion of slandering China’s heroes and martyrs,” a charge tied to his longstanding sculptural practice repurposing art historical icons to challenge official narratives and mythmaking. That year, more than 100 artworks were seized during a police raid on his studio in Sanhe City, China, including ones such as Miss Mao, Mao’s Guilt and The Execution of Christ, which critique the Chinese Communist Party’s authoritarianism and censorship.   Related Articles As the Human Rights Foundation noted in its April petition to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, the three works were all created at least nine years before China’s 2021 law prohibiting “slandering” its “heroes” and “martyrs” was enacted. “Applying it retroactively to criminalize Zhen’s artwork shows the lengths to which the CCP is willing to go to silence dissent,” …

Texas governor halts new H-1B visa petitions by state agencies, public universities

Texas governor halts new H-1B visa petitions by state agencies, public universities

Published by Sam Flores

Gov. Greg Abbott talks about an approaching winter storm at the State Operations Center in Austin on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. Jay Janner | Austin American-Statesman | Hearst Newspapers | Getty Images Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Tuesday ordered an investigation into the H-1B visa program in the state, and directed state agencies and universities to suspend new visa petitions. “In light of recent reports of abuse in the federal H-1B visa program, and amid the federal government’s ongoing review of that program to ensure American jobs are going to American workers, I am directing all state agencies to immediately freeze new H-1B visa petitions,” Abbott said in a letter to state agencies. The Republican governor said the freeze will last until May 31, 2027, and will allow exceptions for cases where written permission is given by the Texas Workforce Commission. The governor gave agencies until March 27, 2026, to compile a report identifying how many new and renewal H-1B petitions they submitted last year, the number of visa holders sponsored and the countries of …

Inside the petitions to deport Nicki Minaj and why over 120,000 people have signed them

Inside the petitions to deport Nicki Minaj and why over 120,000 people have signed them

Published by Sam Flores

Nicki Minaj is in hot water with over 120,000 people. There are several Change.org petitions to deport the 43-year-old rapper to her native Trinidad and Tobago, with the most popular petition amassing 83,000. While the most signed petition was launched on July 9, 2025, the popularity of them has only increased after Nicki aligned herself with conservative activist Erika Kirk and praised President Donald Trump’s administration. On December 21, Nicki appeared on stage with the late Charlie Kirk‘s wife at Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest. She walked out to her song “Super Bass” while holding hands with Erika and told Erika: “I’m honored to be here, thank you for having me.” In a recent petition created on December 27, which has been signed by 45,351 people, the author, Tristan Hamilton, wrote: “Nicki Minaj’s actions and words have taken a turn that has left many of her supporters and those who once found solace in her music feeling deeply betrayed.” Erika and Nicki at Turning Point USA’s annual AmericaFest conference (Getty Images) It continues: “Deporting Nicki Minaj …

Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell petitions to vacate sex crime conviction

Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell petitions to vacate sex crime conviction

Published by Sam Flores

Ghislaine Maxwell on Sept. 20, 2013 in New York City. Laura Cavanaugh | Getty Images Ghislaine Maxwell, who was found guilty of crimes related to procuring underage girls to be sexually abused by Jeffrey Epstein, filed a petition on Wednesday seeking to vacate her conviction, claiming “substantial new evidence has emerged” that undermines the case against her. Maxwell’s long-shot habeas petition in U.S. District Court in Manhattan could, if approved, see the former British socialite released from the federal prison in Texas where she is serving a 20-year sentence. However, such petitions are routinely denied. The Supreme Court earlier this year declined to hear Maxwell’s appeal of her conviction. Habeas petitions are, as a rule, the last option for an imprisoned person to void their convictions. Maxwell filed her petition “pro se,” or on her own, without a lawyer representing her in that effort. The petition comes two days before a congressionally mandated deadline for the Department of Justice to release its investigative files about Epstein and Maxwell. Maxwell says in her court filing that …