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My Europe Series

Italy leads way on prison reform but system in crisis

Italy is showing the world how to reform prisons, and has passed into law an impressive and widely-praised reform package. But the money to implement it is sorely lacking, and in the meantime most of

14/04/2016

Portugal

Ex-CIA agent loses extradition appeal and looks likely to serve jail term in Italy

Former CIA operative Sabrina de Sousa has lost her appeal in Portugal’s supreme court against extradition to Italy to serve a six-year sentence for

12/04/2016

Angola

Angola: Rapper jailed on rebellion charges with other activists

He has been on hunger strike. Now Portuguese Angolan rapper Luaty Beirão has been jailed with 16 other activists for ‘conspiracy to commit a

28/03/2016

Canada

[Watch] Inmates escape Canadian jail by helicopter

Two inmates at a Canadian jail created their own version of “The Great Escape”, fleeing Quebec’s St-Jérôme jail by clinging to a cord attached to a

17/03/2016

Norway

Norway's mass killer Anders Breivik sues his jailers for violating his human rights

Anders Behring Breivik , the man convicted of killing 77 people in Norway’s worst peacetime atrocity is suing his jailers for alleged cruel and

14/03/2016

World News

Syrian pair jailed over death of refugee boy Aylan Kurdi

A Turkish court has jailed two Syrians over the drowning of toddler Aylan Kurdi and four others including his mother and brother. Each sentenced to

04/03/2016

Mexico

El Chapo: Extradite me to the US, the Mexican prison guards won't let me sleep!

A complaint of sleep deprivation is said to be behind a request by the captured drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman

02/03/2016

Turkey

Release of Turkish journalists 'a clear defeat' for Erdogan

The release of two Turkish journalists has been described by one of them as a “clear defeat” for the country’s president. Can Dundar from

02/03/2016

World News

Former leader of banned Basque party freed from jail in Spain

The former leader of the outlawed Basque separatist party Batasuna, Arnaldo Otegi, was greeted by supporters shouting independence

01/03/2016

Ukraine

Ukrainian soldiers swapped for rebel fighters and a priest

Three Ukrainian soldiers have been exchanged for five rebel fighters and one Orthodox priest. The swap was made just north of the rebel stronghold of

20/02/2016

Israel

Former Israeli PM Ehud Olmert starts 19-month jail term for corruption

Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert began a 19 month jail term for corruption on Monday – making him the country’s first ex-head of government

15/02/2016

Romania

Writing your way out of a Romanian prison

Prosecutors in Romania are trying to establish if some prisoners jailed for corruption and fraud are claiming authorship of books to get their

25/01/2016

Iran

Freed American-Iranians arrive in Germany after prisoner swap

The first picture has emerged of Washington Post correspondent Jason Rezaian since his release from jail in Iran under a prisoner swap as a landmark

17/01/2016

USA

Iran US prisoner swap on same day that sanctions are lifted

Jason Rezaian, a Washington Post journalist who’s one of four Americans being released from prison in Iran as part of a deal coinciding with the news

17/01/2016

World News

Iran 'frees four US detainees' in prisoner swap

As diplomats gathered in Vienna on Saturday to announce the lifting of international sanctions on Tehran under last year’s nuclear deal, Iran’s state

16/01/2016

Mexico

Mexican drug lord 'El Chapo' recaptured

He made headlines around the world when he tunneled out of a maximum security prison through a long tunnel, but now he’s been recaptured. The

09/01/2016

World News

The 'forced' marriage that highlights Russia’s repressive new law

24/12/2015

Europe News

Sakharov Prize an 'historic moment' for jailed Saudi blogger Raif Badawi

Jailed Saudi Arabian blogger Raif Badawi has been officially awarded the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. Collecting the European Parliament

16/12/2015

World News

Montserrat Caballe handed six-month suspended jail sentence

The Spanish opera singer Montserrat Caballe has been handed a six-month suspended jail sentence and fined more than 250,000 euros for tax evasion

15/12/2015

Europe News

Wife of jailed Saudi blogger hopes Sakharov Prize will be 'gateway to freedom'

Saudi Arabian blogger Raif Badawi is being officially awarded the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought on Wednesday. But the human rights activist

15/12/2015