New Iranian president wants 'empty prisons'
Iran's newly elected moderate president said Thursday he hoped for the freedom of more prisoners after the recent release of prominent reformists.
China court jails general's son for decade over gang rape
A court sentenced the teenage son of a Chinese general to 10 years in jail for gang rape on Thursday, court authorities said, after his trial threw a spotlight on the lives of China's elite.
Smoking to be banned in English prisons: report
Smoking is set to be prohibited in all prisons in England and Wales over fears of that staff may bring compensation claims.
US convict who was 'too fat to execute' dies in jail
A 485-pound (220-kilogram) convicted murderer who escaped execution after his lawyers argued he was too fat to be put to death has died in prison.
Force-feeding of Gitmo inmates is unethical: US doctor
The force-feeding of hunger striking inmates at the US prison in Guantanamo clearly violates medical ethics and international law.
Jailed Pussy Riot punk asks again for parole
One of the jailed members of Russian punk band Pussy Riot on Wednesday asked again to be released on parole after serving almost a year in prison.
Nazarbayev signs anti-torture law
The document is aimed at creating mechanism for prevention of tortures and other forms of illicit treatment to people in places of confinement.
Every fifth prisoner HIV-positive in East Kazakhstan
Every fifth prisoner serving a sentence in East-Kazakhstan oblast is HIV-positive.
UN assembly slams Assad 'escalation' in Syria war
The UN General Assembly condemned President Bashar al-Assad's "escalation" of the Syrian war on Wednesday as rebels battled to free inmates from a prison in the key city of Aleppo.
Guantanamo prisoners face body search: lawyer
Guantanamo officials have warned detainees at the widely reviled US prison that they will have to be patted down thoroughly each time they meet their lawyers.
Nigerian Islamists attack town, kill 55: army
Nigerian gunmen on Tuesday launched coordinated attacks on military barracks, a prison and police stations in the northeastern town of Bama, killing 55 people and springing 105 inmates.
Guantanamo prisoner speaks of despair, hunger strike
Guantanamo Bay prisoner Obaydullah says he is "losing all hope" after joining a widening hunger strike in February to protest his indefinite detention at the US military jail.
Obama eyes Guantanamo envoy but closure path thorny
President Barack Obama may name a new envoy as a first step toward honoring his renewed pledge to close Guantanamo Bay, but the path to shuttering the "war on terror" camp seems as intractable as ever.
Half of Guantanamo on hunger strike: US official
More than half of the 166 detainees held at the US-run Guantanamo military prison have joined a rapidly growing hunger strike to protest their indefinite detention.
Guantanamo hunger strike grows to 52: official
More Guantanamo detainees have joined a growing hunger strike at the reviled US military prison, with nearly a third of the 166 war-on-terror suspects participating.
US protesters demand closure of Guantanamo
Rights activists across the United States held a series of protests on Thursday demanding the closure of Guantanamo Bay as a hunger-strike at the jail entered a third month.
Kazakhstan Prosecutor General invites Germans to visit prisons
Kazakhstan Prosecutor General Askhat Daulbayev met with German ambassador to Kazakhstan Guido Herz.
Kazakhstan to introduce electronic bracelets in 2014
Kazakhstan plans to start using electronic bracelets in 2014.
Guatanamo hunger strikers ready for death - lawyer
His body ravaged and weakened by a 50-day hunger strike staged in protest at alleged mistreatment of Korans at Guantanamo jail, Abd al-Malik Abd al-Wahab has a message for his loved ones.
Lawyers demand US show steps toward closing Guantanamo
Lawyers for detainees at Guantanamo prison called for the US to show concrete steps towards closing the facility on Tuesday, citing a "humanitarian crisis" at the controversial jail.