2 months ago
BRUSSELS, July 2 (Reuters) - The United States and the European Union expressed concern on Thursday about China's new law on ethnic unity that went into effect this week and gives Beijing the legal basis to take action against people outside its borders.
China passed the law in March to create a "shared" national identity among the country's 55 ethnic minority groups, which include Tibetans and Uyghurs, some of whom chafe under Chinese governance and have often staged protests, some of them violent.
The law, which went into effect on Wednesday, includes a clause saying people and groups beyond the borders of the People's Republic of China can be held legally accountable for undermining "ethnic unity and progress or inciting ethnic separatism."
In a statement, an EU spokesperson said the law may further restrict the cultural, linguistic and religious rights of ethnic minorities.
Such rights should be upheld in line with international human rights standards and China's commitments within the U.N. framework, the spokesperson added.
China passed the law in March to create a "shared" national identity among the country's 55 ethnic minority groups, which include Tibetans and Uyghurs, some of whom chafe under Chinese governance and have often staged protests, some of them violent.
The law, which went into effect on Wednesday, includes a clause saying people and groups beyond the borders of the People's Republic of China can be held legally accountable for undermining "ethnic unity and progress or inciting ethnic separatism."
In a statement, an EU spokesperson said the law may further restrict the cultural, linguistic and religious rights of ethnic minorities.
Such rights should be upheld in line with international human rights standards and China's commitments within the U.N. framework, the spokesperson added.
2 months ago
In Venezuela, round-the-clock rescue missions are racing against time as more than 1,400 people remain unaccounted for following the powerful twin earthquakes that hit near the country's capital five days ago. It comes as the death toll nears 1,500 and a massive global humanitarian mission takes shape. Telemundo's Julio Vaqueiro reports for TODAY.
2 months ago
A man who was accused of faking his own death in 2020 and fleeing to Europe to evade rape charges in the U.S. has died after he was taken to a hospital from a Utah prison, authorities said Friday.
Nicholas Rossi was serving at least 10 years in prison for two ***** ual ***** ault cases that went to trial in Utah in 2025, following a yearslong global saga to find him and then extradite him from Scotland.
Rossi, 38, died Thursday night from "complications of an existing medical condition after choosing to discontinue medical treatment," said Richard Piatt, a spokesperson at the Utah Department of Corrections.
His victims and his family were notified, Piatt said.
Piatt said he couldn't disclose details about Rossi's health problems. But during court appearances, he had appeared in a wheelchair and used oxygen.
Nicholas Rossi was serving at least 10 years in prison for two ***** ual ***** ault cases that went to trial in Utah in 2025, following a yearslong global saga to find him and then extradite him from Scotland.
Rossi, 38, died Thursday night from "complications of an existing medical condition after choosing to discontinue medical treatment," said Richard Piatt, a spokesperson at the Utah Department of Corrections.
His victims and his family were notified, Piatt said.
Piatt said he couldn't disclose details about Rossi's health problems. But during court appearances, he had appeared in a wheelchair and used oxygen.
