Watchdog

The European Court of Human Rights has condemned Russia for the mass deportation of Georgian citizens in 2006.

The Strasbourg-based court ruled on July 3 that the expulsions had been "arbitrary" and violated the European Convention on Human Rights.

It upheld Georgia's claims that Russian authorities had implemented "a coordinated policy of arresting, detaining, and expelling Georgian nationals" living in Russia.

The Georgian goverment said more than 4,600 expulsion orders were issued by Russia from September 2006 to January 2007 and that more than 2,300 were detained and forcibly expelled.

The controversial expulsion campaign came two years before Russia and Georgia fought a brief war over Georgia's pro-Russian breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

With reporting by AFP

Human Rights Watch says a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights approving France's ban on full-face veils is "discriminatory" and breaches the rights of Muslim women.

The court on July 1 upheld France's 2010 blanket ban on wearing the niqab and burqa in public, saying it did not violate religious freedom and aimed to ensure respect for basic democratic values.

Human Rights Watch, however, described the court's decision as "disappointing."

In a statement released on July 3, the U.S.-based rights watchdog said the ban had "a disproportionate impact on Muslim women" and breached the rights to freedom of religion and expression of those who choose to wear full-face veils.

France has the largest Muslim minority in Europe, estimated at 5 million.