AMAL CLOONEY

U.S. President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping will have a rare virtual encounter this week as they gather online with other Pacific Rim leaders to chart a path to recovery out of the crisis brought on by the pandemic.

Huma Abedin is ready to speak.

Journalists, human rights groups and other activists enthusiastically welcomed the awarding of this year’s Nobel Peace Prize to two journalists at a time when media groups around the world face new pressures and crackdowns from the authorities.

British human rights lawyer Amal Clooney has been named as one of 17 special advisers to the new chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court.

British human rights lawyer Amal Clooney was named Friday as one of 17 special advisers to the new chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court. Clooney was appointed as an adviser on the Darfur region of Sudan, where prosecutors allege that government forces and militias backed by Khartoum carried out a campaign of genocide.

High-profile human rights lawyer Amal Clooney and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Nadia Murad on Monday lauded a German court for convicting a former Islamic State member of aiding and abetting crimes against humanity for her involvement in the enslavement of two Yazidi women. Clooney called the conviction of Omaima A., whose last name was withheld as is customary in Germany, a “milestone in the fight for justice” for survivors of the atrocities committed by the Islamic State group.

The International Criminal Court Prosecutor has opened a hearing of evidence against an alleged leader of a notorious militia blamed for atrocities in Darfur.

“The Midnight Sky,” which Clooney directed and stars in, is an apocalyptic sci-fi drama with some striking solitude. Debuting Wednesday on Netflix, “The Midnight Sky,” based on Lily Brooks-Dalton's novel “Good Morning, Midnight," is Clooney's seventh film as director and his biggest scaled production yet. ___AP: You finished shooting “The Midnight Sky” in February, right before the pandemic began. AP: What drew you to “The Midnight Sky”? I know people who are older -- older than me, even -- who live with real regret.

Clooney was honored Monday, Dec. 7, 2020, by co-stars and colleagues at the annual film benefit for the Museum of Modern Art, held virtually. MoMA’s annual film benefit raises funds to bring great works of film to the museum’s collection. Also giving virtual tributes Monday evening were actors Felicity Jones, Tiffany Boone, Kyle Chandler and Demian Bichir, who appear in “A Midnight Sky,” which Clooney stars in and directs. The benefit featured clips from some of Clooney’s many films: “Michael Clayton,” “Syriana,” "The Descendants,” “Gravity,” and “Good Night, and Good Luck,” among others. In earlier comments to The Associated Press, Clooney said “Good Night, and Good Luck” was probably his proudest professional accomplishment.

In a letter Friday to British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, the human rights lawyer said she is quitting her role as the U.K.’s special envoy on media freedom over the government’s “lamentable” suggestion. Clooney, who married movie star George Clooney in 2014, becomes the latest lawyer to resign over the planned legislation. Richard Keen, the British government’s law officer for Scotland, and the head of its legal department, Jonathan Jones, have also quit in the past couple of weeks. The British government has admitted that the legislation could potentially break international law, but argues that it’s an insurance policy for that potential ‘no-deal’ scenario. As a result, the two sides agreed there would be some kind of regulatory border between mainland Britain and Northern Ireland, an agreement that the planned legislation could breach.

None of the pathways to a court have been studied, pursued, or seriously discussed at the United Nations, or by the Security Council, Clooney said. And Murad and Clooney said over 120,000 Yazidis who have returned to Sinjar desperately need health care, electricity, shelter, clean water, sanitation, education and opportunities to make a living. The international community must fulfill its promise to deliver justice for the Yazidi community. In addition, 57 nations are supporting a case brought by Gambia at the International Court of Justice under the Genocide Convention, and the International Criminal Court is investigating crimes in Myanmar, she said. Yazidi survivors deserve no less, Clooney said, stressing that government leaders, U.N. diplomats and all those with influence have a responsibility to respond.

High profile journalist Maria Ressa went on trial Tuesday on criminal libel charges in the Philippines. Ressa and press freedom advocates around the world believe controversial President Rodrigo Duterte's government had the journalist arrested in retaliation for critical reporting on the website Rappler, which Ressa founded. Journalist and CEO of Rappler fights weaponization of social media in PhilippinesAs reported last month in a CBSN Original on Ressa, the journalist is facing a total of 11 criminal charges in her home country. In the statement from the Doughty Street Chambers firm, Clooney called Ressa "a courageous journalist who is being persecuted for reporting the news and standing up to human rights abuses." The lawyers were to work in conjunction with another international law team in Washington D.C., including Daniel Feldman, a former U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia.

London -- International lawyer Amal Clooney is to spearhead a team of global law experts providing assistance to Philippines journalist Maria Ressa, a London-based law firm has announced. In a statement from the frim Doughty Street Chambers, Clooney called Ressa "a courageous journalist who is being persecuted for reporting the news and standing up to human rights abuses." Philippine journalist Maria Ressa fights for freedom after another arrest"I don't know what's next," Ressa told CBS News in June. International human rights lawyer Amal Clooney speaks on September 12, 2016 in Stuttgart, Germany. They were to work in conjunction with another international law team in Washington D.C., including Daniel Feldman, a former U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia.