Cambodian Tribunal Upholds Life Terms for Khmer Rouge Leaders

Cambodian Tribunal Upholds Life Terms for Khmer Rouge Leaders
A U.N.-backed tribunal in Cambodia has upheld life sentences given to two former leaders of the Khmer Rouge regime for crimes against humanity.
Khieu Samphan and Nuon Chea were originally sentenced in 2014. The Supreme Court Chamber's top judge Kong Srim said Wednesday the life sentences were appropriate, and that the two men showed a "complete lack of consideration for the ultimate fate of the Cambodian population."
Chea and Samphan are the most senior Khmer Rouge officials still living. They are also on trial in a second case involving genocide charges. Their lawyers argued the 2014 conviction was tainted by errors and biased judges, and while Wednesday's decision noted some problems, the overall verdict(裁决） remained the same.

tribunal noun: a special court or group of people who are officially chosen, especially by the government, to examine (legal) problems of a particular type: 
trial noun: the hearing of statements and showing of objects, etc. in a law court to judge if a person is guilty of a crime or to decide a case or a legal matter: 
gonocide: the murder of a whole group of people, especially a whole nation, race, or religious group: 
taint: to spoil something, especially food or blood, by adding a harmful substance, or to spoil people's opinion of someone: 
verdict noun: an opinion or decision made after judging the facts that are given, especially one made at the end of a trial:


Colombia, FARC Set to Sign Renegotiated Peace Deal
The Colombian government and the country's largest rebel group, FARC, are set to sign a renegotiated peace deal Thursday.
The revised document will be signed in Bogota between FARC leader Rodrigo Londono and Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, who won the Nobel Peace Prize last month for his efforts to end the conflict with the insurgent group.
The government and representatives of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia have been negotiating in Cuba for more than four years to bring an end to the conflict that has killed more than 220,000 and displaced millions in the Andean country.
Last month, voters taking part in that referendum surprisingly rejected the first accord. After it is signed, the new deal will be submitted to Congress for approval, rather than put to another referendum.
Ever since the original deal's defeat at the polls, the FARC and government negotiators have worked around the clock, introducing some 50-plus changes to make it more acceptable to conservative Colombians who overwhelmingly despise  the FARC.

insurgent noun: formal someone who is fighting against the government in their own country: 
displace: to force something or someone out of its usual or original position: 
referendum: a vote in which all the people in a country or an area are asked to give their opinion about or decide an important political or social question: 
around the clock: happening or done all day and all night: 
despise: to feel a strong dislike for someone or something because you think that that person or thing is bad or has no value: