Who is Thomas Matthew Crooks, the suspected Trump rally shooter

BETHEL PARK, Pennsylvania US

The FBI identified 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania as the suspect in Saturday's attempted assassination of former U.S. President Donald Trump at a campaign rally.

The suspect was shot and killed by the Secret Service seconds after he allegedly fired shots toward a stage where Trump was speaking in Butler, Pennsylvania.

The FBI said it was working to determine a motive for the attack, in which one rally attendee died and two other spectators were critically injured. Trump was shot in the ear.

State voter records show that Crooks was a registered Republican. The upcoming Nov. 5 election would have been the first time Crooks had been old enough to vote in a presidential race.

Crooks lived about an hour away from where the shooting took place in Butler. The Federal Aviation Administration said on Sunday that it closed the airspace over Bethel Park for "special security reasons."

When Crooks was 17 he made a $15 donation to ActBlue, a political action committee that raises money for left-leaning and Democratic politicians, according to a 2021 Federal Election Commission filing.

The donation was earmarked for the Progressive Turnout Project, a national group that rallies Democrats to vote. The groups did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Crooks' father, Matthew Crooks, 53, told reporters that he was trying to figure out what happened and would wait until he spoke to law enforcement before speaking about his son.

Thomas Crooks graduated in 2022 from Bethel Park High School, according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. He received a $500 "star award" from the National Math and Science Initiative, according to the newspaper.

A 2022 graduation ceremony video cited by the New York Times shows Crooks receiving his high school diploma to some applause. 

Video from that ceremony posted online shows Crooks with glasses in a black graduation gown and posing with a school official. 

Law enforcement officials said on Saturday that Crooks carried no identification to the site of the shooting and had to be identified using other methods.

"We're looking at photographs right now and we're trying to run his DNA and get biometric confirmation," Kevin Rojek, FBI special agent in charge, said during a press briefing.

USA Today reported that dozens of law enforcement vehicles were stationed outside a residence listed at the address on Crooks' voter registration record. 

Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were on the scene and a bomb squad was at the residence, USA Today reported.

The perimeter of the residence of the suspect was guarded on Sunday by yellow police caution tape. An Allegheny County Police vehicle was parked outside.

“It’s insanity that anyone would do this,” Dan Maloney, a 30-year-old resident from the area was quoted as saying by USA Today.

World leaders condemn attack on Trump

WASHINGTON,  US

Leaders around the world have condemned the shooting of former US President Donald Trump on Saturday and expressed concern for him.

The Republican presidential candidate was at a rally in Pennsylvania when he was shot in the right ear.

The FBI has named 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks as the man suspected of carrying out the attack. He has been killed.

US President Joe Biden - Trump's political opponent - called the assassination attempt "sick", saying "there's no place for this kind of violence in America".

"I’m praying for him and his family and for all those who were at the rally, as we await further information," he added.

French President Emmanuel Macron said his thoughts were with Donald Trump, who was a "victim" of an attack.

"It is a tragedy for our democracies. France shares the shock and indignation of the American people.”

He also wished for the former president's "speedy recovery", a sentiment shared by a number of leaders, including those from Spain, Ireland, Italy, Australia, Turkey, Honduras and Israel.

In a social media post, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban wrote: “My thoughts and prayers are with President @realDonaldTrump in these dark hours.”

The right-wing premier has recently been on a whirlwind two-week tour that concluded with a visit to Trump, whom he strongly backs to win again in November.

Canada's Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, said his thoughts were with Trump and all those at the event, adding: "Political violence is never acceptable."

As well as the suspected gunman, one spectator has also died and two others are critically injured.

Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum reiterated the condemnation expressed by her various counterparts, adding: "Peace and democracy must always be the option.”

The UK's newly elected Prime Minister Keir Starmer sent the former president his best wishes and said his thoughts were with all the victims of the attack.

Similarly, Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz said his thoughts were with all those affected, and called the attack "despicable".

"Such acts of violence threaten democracy,” he added.

Nations across the Asian continent also sent messages, including Japan, the Philippines, Pakistan and Taiwan.

Indian Prime Minister Nahendra Modi said he was “deeply concerned" by the attack on his friend and condemned it.

Meanwhile, China's President Xi Jinping "expressed his condolences" in a statement from an official spokesperson, which added China was "concerned" about the shooting.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said: “Russia always denounced and categorically denounces any displays of force in a political battle.

"We express condolences to the family of the deceased and wish a speedy recovery to the injured."

Mr Peskov added that the US had a repeated history of similar violence during "political battles".

To date, the US has lost four presidents to assassinations, while others have been targets of attempted attacks.

FBI leads investigation into Trump assassination attempt at campaign rally

WASHINGTON,  US

Former U.S. President Donald Trump said late Saturday that a bullet clipped his right ear after shots were fired in his direction at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania and the nation’s top law enforcement agency said it had taken the lead in the investigation.

"This evening, we had what we are calling an assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump. It's still an active crime scene," Kevin Rojek, special agent in charge of the FBI's Pittsburgh field office, said during a press conference.

The shooter is dead, one rally attendee was killed and two other spectators were injured, according to a statement from the Secret Service.

The shooting happened just after Trump took the stage at 6 p.m. local time at a rally in the town of Butler.

“We will continue to support this investigation with the full resources of the FBI, alongside our partners at the U.S. Secret Service and state and local law enforcement,” the FBI said earlier in a statement.

The event prompted President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Barack Obama to issue strong statements condemning political violence.

Late Saturday, the White House said Biden had spoken to Trump – though they did not immediately give details of the conversation – and also to Pennsylvania’s governor and Butler’s mayor. 

The administration also said he was returning to the White House in the early hours of Sunday, instead of remaining at his Delaware home as planned.

The incident threatens to further intensify and complicate an already tough presidential race and inflame rhetoric around an already tense national debate.

On Saturday, in a statement on social media site X, the Republican National Committee said that Trump still intended to appear at the party’s convention in Milwaukee on Monday.

Trump also confirmed, in a statement on his social media site, that the shooter was killed, and that one spectator at the rally was killed and another wounded. 

In a statement published on X, the Secret Service said two people attending the rally were wounded, not one.

Trump also thanked the Secret Service and law enforcement for their work.

“Most importantly,” he said, “I want to extend my condolences to the family of the person at the rally who was killed, and also to the family of another person that was badly injured. It is incredible that such an act can take place in our country. Nothing is known at this time about the shooter, who is now dead.”

“I was shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear,” he continued. “I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin. Much bleeding took place, so I realized then what was happening. GOD BLESS AMERICA!”

Spain sharpen claws for Euro 2024 glory against England

BERLIN,  Germany 

Spain sharpened their claws at their German base in Donaueschingen, Saturday, as Luis de la Fuente's men seek a record fourth UEFA European Championship title when they take on an England side looking for their first in the final of UEFA EURO 2024 at the Olympiastadion Berlin, on Sunday.

England's Harry Kane attends a training session ahead of Sunday's Euro 2024 final soccer match against Spain, in Blankenhain, Germany, Saturday July 13, 2024

La Roja are already the joint-most successful side in the competition's history with three titles, level with Germany, and are aiming to make it three triumphs in the last five tournaments. 

England, meanwhile, have reached consecutive finals and are hoping to claim the trophy for the first time having lost on penalties to Italy at Wembley at EURO 2020.

Both teams came from behind to win 2-1 in their semi-finals. Spain saw off France in Munich on 9 July thanks to strikes from Lamine Yamal – who turned 17 on Saturday (July 13th) after becoming the youngest scorer in EURO history – and Dani Olmo; 24 hours later, a 91st-minute strike from substitute Ollie Watkins earned England victory against Netherlands in Dortmund, Harry Kane having levelled from the penalty spot in the first half.

That was England's third successive dramatic knockout tie, an added-time strike from Jude Bellingham preventing elimination at the hands of Slovakia in the round of 16 before Kane headed an extra-time winner in a 2-1 victory. 

Switzerland were then defeated on penalties after Bukayo Saka had made it 1-1 with ten minutes remaining of normal time.

Spain eased past Georgia 4-1 in the last 16 – although they had to come from behind – before Mikel Merino's 119th-minute header earned a 2-1 extra-time victory against hosts Germany in the quarter-finals.

Both teams had topped their groups, Spain the only side to win all three games as they claimed first place in Group B thanks to victories against Croatia (3-0), Italy and Albania (both 1-0). 

England were first in Group C despite winning only one game, against Serbia on Matchday 1 (1-0); they subsequently drew with Denmark (1-1) and Slovenia (0-0).

This is the first European Championship final at the Olympiastadion, the venue for Italy's shootout win against France in the 2006 FIFA World Cup final and Barcelona's 2015 UEFA Champions League final defeat of Juventus.

England had their full squad of 26 players available at their last training session on Saturday before travelling to Berlin for the Euro 2024 final against Spain.

The ‘Three Lions’ have reached Sunday’s showpiece after a much-criticised start to the campaign which saw them win just one game of their first four games within 90 minutes, a 1-0 victory over Serbia in their opening Group C fixture.

England required a dramatic 95th-minute overhead kick from star midfielder Jude Bellingham to prevent a last-16 elimination at the hands of Slovakia and edged past Switzerland on penalties in Saturday’s quarter-final in Dusseldorf.

But the team stepped up a level against the Netherlands in Wednesday’s semi-final, a last minute goal from substitute Ollie Watkins secured a 2-1 victory in Dortmund, which sent them to their second successive European Championship final.

Three years ago they lost to Italy on penalties in the Covid-delayed Euro 2020 final, at Wembley Stadium, their home ground.

To date the only major trophy England has won is the 1966 World Cup final, again at Wembley, under Sir Alf Ramsey.

They have never reached a final on foreign soil.

School collapse in Nigeria kills 22 students, rescue efforts ongoing

ABUJA,  Nigeria 

A two-storey  school building in Jos city, Plateau state, north-central Nigeria, collapsed during morning classes on Friday, resulting in the deaths of 22 students.

The Saints Academy college collapsed shortly after students, mostly aged 15 or younger, arrived for classes.

A total of 154 students were trapped; 132 were rescued and are being treated for injuries, according to Plateau police spokesman Alfred Alabo.

Rescue and health workers, along with security forces, were immediately deployed to the scene.

The state government blamed the collapse on the school's weak structure and its location near a riverbank, urging other schools with similar issues to close down.

Building collapses are increasingly common in Nigeria, often due to poor enforcement of building regulations and inadequate maintenance.

Kenya's police chief resigns after deadly anti-tax protests

By Anne Soy, NAIROBI  Kenya 

Kenya's Inspector General of Police, Japhet Koome has resigned, following weeks of violent protests against proposed tax hikes in which more than 40 people died.

Human rights groups have accused police of shooting dozens of protestors, some of them fatally, and abducting or arbitrarily arresting hundreds more.

The resignation comes a day after President William Ruto sacked most of his cabinet, following pressure from the protest movement which is largely coordinated online by young Kenyans.

Two weeks ago protesters stormed parliament, shortly after legislators passed the controversial finance bill. Police responded by opening fire on demonstrators in the streets.

President Ruto later withdrew the bill but that has failed to satisfy the demonstrators, who want him to step down and are planning more protests to demand further reforms.

Deputy police chief Douglas Kanja takes over running the force with immediate effect, the Kenyan presidency has said.

Mr Koome's resignation has been welcomed by Kenyans, yet police officers who caught on film firing at protesters remain at large.

Last week during an unprecedented discussion on X, formerly Twitter, President Ruto promised Kenyans he would take action against those police officers once he received video evidence. It is not clear whether this has happened.

On Friday at least 11 dead bodies, some of them dismembered, were found at a rubbish tip in the capital, Nairobi, after residents raised the alarm. It is not yet clear whether their deaths have any connection with the protests.

In the midst of the biggest crisis of his two-year presidency, Mr Ruto earlier this week met opposition leader Raila Odinga and announced plans to form a 150-member dialogue panel to help find a solution to the country's problems.

After sacking key cabinet members on Thursday including the attorney-general, the president said he would now consult widely in order to set up a broad-based government.

The proposed tax measures were intended to help ease the country's debt burden of over $80bn (£63bn). About 60% of Kenya’s collected revenues goes to servicing debt.

But protesters have insisted the government should first cut spending, saying there was too much waste and corruption. In response to this demand, the presidency last week announced a number of austerity measures.

Inmates escape Niger prison that holds militants

NIAMEY, Niger

Niger's interior ministry said it had ordered search units to be on alert after inmates escaped Thursday from the high-security Koutoukale prison, whose inmates include Islamist militants.

The ministry statement did not say how many prisoners had escaped Koutoukale, which lies 50 kilometers northwest of the capital, Niamey, or how they had done so. In 2016 and 2019, attempted jail breaks at the facility were repelled.

The prison's inmates include detainees from the West African country's conflict with armed groups linked to al-Qaida and Islamic State and suspected Boko Haram insurgents.

Local authorities imposed an overnight curfew in the urban commune of Tillaberi, which is in the same region as the prison, but did not give further details.

Niger and its neighbors in the central Sahel region are on the front lines of the battle to contain a jihadist threat that has steadily grown since 2012, when al-Qaida-linked fighters first seized parts of Mali.

Thousands have been killed in the insurgencies and more than 3 million displaced, fueling a deep humanitarian crisis in some of the world's poorest countries.

Kenyan Senator calls for President's resignation

NAIROBI,  Kenya 

Kenyan Senator, Okiya Omtatah, has reiterated his demand for President William Ruto's resignation despite the head of state dissolving Cabinet on Thursday as an initial measure to tackle administrative inefficiencies within the Kenya Kwanza government.

Speaking on the Senate floor on Thursday, Omtatah stressed that the shortcomings of the ruling regime should not be attributed solely to the sacked ministers but also President Ruto as well. According to Omtatah, the captain should take responsibility and go down with his ship.

"The Cabinet has been dissolved but that is like putting balm on a wound. What we demand or what I personally think is ready to happen is that the entire Kenya Kwanza administration, led by President Ruto, must vacate power. I am demanding that President Ruto vacate office; it's the only honourable thing to do.," said Omtatah.

"Everything around him (Ruto) has collapsed. So you cannot say that his juniors should bear the burden. The ball stops with him and the call that President Ruto must go is a call that must be applied and as they say a fish begins rotting from the head."

Additionally, Omtatah referenced the multiple deaths of protesters recorded in June during the height of the anti-government demonstrations and Ruto's subsequent statement after the demonstrators breached Parliament Grounds on June 25.

Speaking then,  Ruto described the breach of parliament as treasonous, vowing to crack down on the organisers and financiers of the protests, whom he labelled criminals, at "whatever cost."

"The call that Ruto must go is not an idle call; it is a call whose time has come. Mr. Ruto told us that criminals were on the streets; he has not produced a single criminal and we cannot be told lies every day. Justice is crying out, our children have died and this is something that has never happened in Kenya," said Omtatah.

"The president has called them criminals and he cannot continue sitting in power when children have died and he said "we'll do anything at whatever cost" when the constitution says you can't do anything at whatever cost."  

The Busia Senator added; "My call is to associate my voice with people who are saying that the President vacate office. There is no room for all we are doing here; let's start off on a new slate. Anything less than that will not avenge the blood that has been spilled on our streets!" 

Mali's junta lifts three-month suspension on political party activities

BAMAKO, Mali 

Mali's military junta on Wednesday said it would allow political parties and associations to resume their activities.

The announcement by the council of ministers came three months after activities were suspended, purportedly to safeguard public order.

At the time, political parties were protesting against the military government’s decision to stay in power beyond a March 2024 deadline for returning to civilian rule.

The suspension in April came days before the start of a national dialogue for peace in Mali, that has been battling a jihadist insurgency for over a decade.

Military leaders, who have been in power since 2020, justified the move saying political parties posed a danger to the discussions on the country’s political future.

Despite a boycott of the dialogue by the main political parties and what remains of the opposition, the discussions went ahead with supporters of the regime.

In May, it recommended the military remain in power for “two to five additional years” And that the current head of the junta be allowed to run for any future presidential election.

Over the past two years, the junta has broken its long-standing alliance with France and its European partners to turn militarily and politically towards Russia.

It also kicked out the UN peacekeeping mission, Minusma, deployed to help restore stability in the north where government troops are battling the Islamist insurgency.

Ugandan youth jailed 6 years for insulting president online

ENTEBBE, Uganda 

A 24-year-old Ugandan man has been sentenced to six years in prison for using TikTok to spread hate speech and false information against President Yoweri Museveni and the entire first family.

Entebbe Chief Magistrate Court's Chief Magistrate, Stellah-Maris Amabilisi, delivered the sentence on Wednesday. Edward Awebwa, who ran the account "Save Media Uganda," was arrested for posting a video insulting the president; his wife and his son.

Kampala Metropolitan Deputy Police Spokesperson Luke Owoyesigyire stated that Awebwa shared videos mocking the president between February and March 2024.

This sentencing is part of a broader campaign by security agencies against people using social media to insult senior government officials.

Awebwa is one of several content creators jailed under the Computer Misuse Act of 2022 for spreading "malicious information" and "hate speech." Human rights activists have challenged this law in the Constitutional Court, calling it repressive.

The Computer Misuse Act defines offensive communication as the "willful and repeated use of electronic communication to disturb or attempt to disturb the peace, quiet, or right of privacy of any person with no purpose of legitimate communication." The offence can result in a fine, up to one year in prison, or both.

In the resembleling incident in the neighbouring Tanzania, a Rungwe district court in Mbeya region on, July 4, 2024 convicted one Shadrack Chaula aged 24 to serve two (2) years in prison or pay a fine of 5 million shillings for the crime of publishing false information online in accordance with section 16 of the online crime law 2015.

Chaula who is a painting artist, was earlier alleged by police of burning portrait of President Samia Hassan he drew, speaking "harsh words" about the hardships of life in Tanzania.

The country's activists and opposition mobilised and paid the fine that set Chaula free.

Severe penalties for homosexuality in Burkina Faso

OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso 

The Burkina Faso military junta leader, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, has approved a revised family code that criminalizes homosexuality.

This decision makes Burkina Faso one of the 22 out of 54 African countries that do not allow same-sex relationships, with severe penalties such as death or long prison sentences in some regions.

The council approved a decree for a new Personal and Family Code (CPF) that "enshrines the ban on homosexuality" in the country, the presidency announced in a statement.

"From now on, homosexuality and related practices are prohibited and punishable by law," emphasized the Minister of Justice, Edasso Rodrigue Bayala.

Although the specific penalties were not outlined, and the text is yet to be approved by the deputies of the Transitional Legislative Assembly,

Burkina Faso may now joins the ranks of Uganda that enacted one of the harshest anti-LGBTQ laws globally in May of last year.

Kenya President fires all Cabinet ministers, Attorney Genera in bid to cool protesting youths

By Benjamin Muriuki, NAIROBI Kenya 

President of Kenya, William Ruto has fired all Cabinet (Secretaries) Ministers and the Attorney General with immediate effect.

Kenya has seen three weeks of unrest in which youthful protesters stormed into parliament on June 25 after a finance bill that increased taxes was passed. 

More than 30 people died in the protests, which have morphed into calls for the president to resign.

Addressing the Nation from State House Nairobi Thursday afternoon, President Ruto (pictured above) said the only office that will not be affected is that of Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua and Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi.

President Ruto said he had resolved to dissolve his Cabinet "upon reflection, listening keenly to what the people of Kenya have said and after a holistic appraisal of the performance of the cabinet and its achievements and challenges."

"I have, in line with the powers given to me by Article 152(1) and 152(5)(b) of the Constitution and Section 12 of the Office of the Attorney-General Act, decided to dismiss with immediate effect all the Cabinet Secretaries and the Attorney-General from the Cabinet of the Republic of Kenya except the Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs," said Ruto.

Principal Secretaries (PS') will oversee daily government operations following the dissolution of Cabinet.

The Head of State noted that, in the meantime, he will immediately engage in extensive consultations across different sectors and political formations, with the aim of setting up a "broad-based government" and one that is "lean, inexpensive, effective and efficient."

He promised to assemble a new team that would assist him in implementing "radical programmes to deal with the burden of debt, raising domestic resources, expanding job opportunities, eliminate wastage and unnecessary duplication of a multiplicity of government agencies and slay the dragon of corruption."

This comes barely two years since he officially appointed the 24-member Cabinet on October 26, 2022

Israeli army orders evacuation of battle-torn Gaza City

GAZA STRIP, Palestine 

Israel’s army dropped thousands of leaflets over war-torn Gaza City on Wednesday urging all residents to flee a heavy offensive through the main city of the besieged Palestinian territory.

The leaflets, addressed to “everyone in Gaza City,” set out designated escape routes and warned that the urban area, which had a pre-war population of over half a million, would “remain a dangerous combat zone.”

The warning came as Israeli troops, backed by tanks and aircraft, have fought Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants in the heaviest combat the city has seen in months in the war raging since October 7.

The United Nations said the latest evacuations “will only fuel mass suffering for Palestinian families, many of whom have been displaced many times.”

“The civilians must be protected,” said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’s spokesman, Stephane Dujarric.

An Israeli government spokesman said the aim was “to put civilians out of harm’s way” as troops battle militants “where they are.”

One woman carrying her scant belongings through the ruins, Umm Nimr Al-Jamal, told AFP on Tuesday that “this is the 12th time” her family has had to flee.

“How many times can we endure this? A thousand times? Where will we end up?“

The upsurge in fighting, bombardment and displacement came as talks were to resume in Qatar toward a truce and hostage release deal in the war now grinding on into its 10th month.

Hamas official Hossam Badran, asked about the increased military operations, told AFP that Israel was “hoping that the resistance will relinquish its legitimate demands” in truce negotiations.

But “the continuation of massacres compels us to adhere to our demands,” he said.

Heavy fighting also raged in Gaza’s far-southern Rafah, where witnesses told AFP that Israeli tanks had rumbled into the city center and unleashed intense fire on buildings.

53 sentenced to life for 'Terror' links in UAE mass trial

ABU DHABI, United Arabs Emirates 

A court in the United Arab Emirates has handed life sentences to 53 Emiratis for "terrorist" links, state media said Wednesday, after a mass trial heavily criticised by UN experts and rights groups.

Government critics and human rights activists were among the 84 defendants brought before the Abu Dhabi Federal Court of Appeal, most of whom have been in jail since a similar trial of 94 people in 2013, according to rights groups.

The Abu Dhabi court "sentenced 53 defendants to life imprisonment for the crime of creating, establishing, and managing a terrorist organisation" linked to the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, the official WAM news agency said.

Ten others were jailed for 10-15 years, WAM said, with one defendant acquitted and 24 cases ruled inadmissible. It did not give details of the remaining cases.

Defendants can still appeal the verdicts before the Federal Supreme Court.

The trial, which kicked off in December, has been condemned by rights groups and United Nations experts who accuse the oil-rich Gulf monarchy of cracking down on dissent.

Most of the defendants have already been in prison for more than a decade since the "UAE 94" trial 11 years ago, according to Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Amnesty International.

But UAE authorities say the latest charges are "materially distinct" from those brought in 2013, which did not include accusations of financing a "terrorist organisation".

The UAE has not named the 84 defendants but the Emirates Detainees Advocacy Center, a UK-based watchdog, has identified more than 70 people, most of them already imprisoned.

The latest verdict makes a "mockery of justice", said Joey Shea, HRW's UAE researcher, calling it "another nail in the coffin for the UAE's nascent civil society".

Among those sentenced to life in prison is Emirati academic Nasser bin Ghaith who has been held since August 2015 over social media posts, according to Shea.

Amnesty International called it a "shameless parody of justice," alleging fair trial violations.

"Trying 84 Emiratis at once, including 26 prisoners of conscience and well-known human rights defenders is a scarcely disguised exercise in punishing dissenters," said Devin Kenney, Amnesty's UAE Researcher.

The UAE has denied any wrongdoing.

WAM said the court had "guaranteed the defendants all their rights".

The report said they were trying to "create and replicate violent events" that would have left "dead and injured in the squares and streets".

The UAE, a federation of seven absolute monarchies, prohibits criticism of its rulers and any speech that is deemed to create or encourage social unrest.

Defamation as well as verbal and written insults, whether published or made privately, are crimes punishable by fines and imprisonment.

In 2012, in the wake of the so-called Arab Spring revolts across the Middle East, the UAE launched a spate of arrests and prosecutions targeting dozens of Emirati dissidents who demanded political reform.

About 60 of the "UAE 94" put on trial then remain behind bars for alleged links to the Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist movement that is outlawed in the Gulf state.

In a letter sent to UAE authorities in January, independent UN experts said they were concerned that the latest proceedings against the 84 defendants reflect "a broader pattern of suppression of dissent and civil society in the UAE".

They questioned "alleged irregularities" such as "the use of torture or other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment to extract forced confessions".

Ben Saul, the UN's special rapporteur on human rights and counter-terrorism, said the latest charges "relate to the same conduct for which many of these defendants were tried the first time around a decade ago".

The trial was a "deeply regressive step" and a "terrible example of the misuse of counter-terrorism measures against civil society", he told an expert panel hosted by the Geneva Press Club in March.

Last week, HRW said many of the defendants have been kept incommunicado for at least a year and have reported abuses including physical assault, lack of access to medicine, incessant loud music and forced nudity.

The wealthy country's allies, including the United States, Britain and the European Union, should speak out about the "unfair mass trial", HRW said.

"Emirati authorities have long used their country's economic and security relationships to prevent criticism of its rights record, but rarely, if ever, has the silence from its allies been so deafening," said HRW's Shea.

South Sudan peace talks risk collapse over new security law ahead of first election

JUBA, South Sudan 

South Sudan peace talks that almost reached completion faced a stumbling block with opposition groups demanding a newly passed bill allowing the detention of people without an arrest warrant scratched out in order to sign a proposed agreement.

Kenya has been hosting high-level meetings since May between government representatives and rebel opposition groups who were not part of a 2018 agreement that ended a five-year civil war, leaving about 400,000 people dead and millions displaced. Despite the agreement, violence often erupted in the country of 9 million.

Pagan Amum Okiech, negotiating on behalf of the South Sudan Opposition Movement Alliance, told the Associated Press Tuesday night that it would be “meaningless to sign any agreement if the draconian National Security Act is signed into law by the president."

Last week, parliament voted in favour of the 2015 bill and President Salva Kiir will have to approve it within 30 days for it to become a law. This comes ahead of the country’s first-ever election on Dec. 22.

“This law violates the fundamental rights and freedoms of South Sudanese citizens, it eliminates civic and political space," Amum said. “There can be no peace or democracy under such a law.”

Attending the peace talks is the executive director of the Community Empowerment for Progress Organization, a non-profit that engages university students and fresh graduates. Edmund Yakani criticized the security bill and said it “created a negative spirit for the negotiations."

Human Rights Watch has also called on Kiir to reject the controversial bill saying that it will further undermine human rights and strengthen national security agencies that have a history of longstanding rights abuses.

The talks — dubbed Tumaini, Swahili for hope — have resulted in a draft agreement proposing to extend the country's transitional period and postpone the coming election to allow finishing up the country's constitution and electoral laws, as well as set up constituency borders and a unified security force as proposed in the 2018 peace talks.

Some Western envoys also recommend delaying the poll “to guarantee a free and fair election.”

Kiir has been adamant about having the election in December and called out the envoys.