The Taliban government in Afghanistan issued a rule on separation of child brides in marriage, and the United Nations responded by expressing its "grave concern."Afghanistan's justice ministry issued a decree containing several provisions regarding the lawful separation of a married couple but included an order pertaining to girls that had reached puberty.'This situation reinforces structural discrimination and limits women's autonomy in matters fundamental to their dignity, safety, and well-being.'The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan said the rules allowed men to interpret the silence of a girl reaching puberty as consent for marriage. Another section implied that child marriage was permitted, according to the agency."This undermines the principle of free and full consent and failing to safeguard the best interests of the child," reads a statement from the organization.The rules also say that a marriage can be declared invalid if a father or grandfather gives a minor girl or boy without any dowry or sufficient dowry.The Taliban decree is "part of a broader and deeply concerning trajectory in which the rights of Afghan women and girls are being eroded," said U.N. Special Representative Georgette Gagnon.The agency said the rules allow women to seek divorce from men but make it far easier to men to seek divorce."While men retain the unilateral right to divorce, women must pursue complex and restrictive judicial avenues to separate from a spouse," UNAMA said. "This situation reinforces structural discrimination and limits women's autonomy in matters fundamental to their dignity, safety, and well-being."RELATED: Pete Hegseth orders investigation into 'catastrophic' withdrawal from Afghanistan under Biden A spokesperson for the Afghan regime said "those who contradict the religion of Islam are not new, and we should not pay attention to them."The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan after former President Joe Biden ordered U.S. military forces out of the nation in 2021. The government almost immediately fell into terrorist hands, and they were able to seize massive amounts of abandoned military assets.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Police made a grisly discovery in a Texas residence that resulted in murder charges against three individuals, according to multiple reports.KMID-TV obtained an arrest affidavit saying an individual alerted the Midland County Sheriff's Office on May 11 claiming he witnessed a possible murder at a local home.Esparza told police that Ramos held him at gunpoint and forced him to shower and change clothes — and then tried to make him dismember the victim's body with a hacksaw, the affidavit stated.Deputies soon conducted a welfare check of 43-year-old Sandra Ramos at her home.When deputies arrived at the property, investigators said they found a double-wide trailer with covered windows, large dogs, trenches being dug behind the residence, and multiple RV spaces on the property, KMID reported.No one answered the door when deputies knocked, according to the arrest affidavit.The affidavit added that deputies obtained phone numbers for Ramos and contacted her, and while she agreed to meet with law enforcement, she never showed up.According to the affidavit, investigators interviewed 31-year-old Victor Esparza — the alleged witness who originally contacted police about the possible murder.Esparza appeared "disorganized" and was "inconsistent" with his details about the alleged killing, KMID reported.The arrest affidavit said Esparza gave police a cell phone reportedly belonging to Ramos, along with recordings of conversations between him and another suspect.Esparza told police the victim had been involved in a money dispute, according to the affidavit.Court documents said Esparza told investigators that Ramos picked up him and the victim from a hotel and brought them to a residence, where multiple individuals were using methamphetamine.Esparza told law enforcement that Ramos contacted another suspect through FaceTime and talked about assaulting the victim.KMID reported that the second suspect arrived at the residence disguised with a bandanna, sunglasses, and a hat.The affidavit said Esparza told police that Ramos was armed with a Springfield 1911-style handgun and held the victim at gunpoint while the other suspect beat the victim with a baseball bat.According to the affidavit, Esparza claimed Ramos assaulted and stabbed the victim, and the victim's body was placed into a large-wheeled storage container.Esparza told police that Ramos held him at gunpoint and forced him to shower and change clothes — and then tried to make him dismember the victim's body with a hacksaw, the affidavit stated.Esparza informed investigators that he fled the residence after Ramos exited the home and left in a vehicle, according to the affidavit.However, another witness at the residence reportedly told police a different story.The affidavit said the other witness told police Esparza assaulted the victim and stomped on him until he lost consciousness.The other witness said Ramos and Esparza strangled the victim to death, court records indicated.On May 12, law enforcement arrived at the residence where the alleged murder took place.Police found a locked door at the home, forced their way into a room, and discovered a storage bin with wheels, the affidavit said.Police said a portable air conditioning unit — which was in a bathroom connected to the room in question — was blowing air directly on the storage bin.Court records said investigators found inside the storage bin the remains of an adult male who had been dismembered.The affidavit alleges Ramos and a second suspect intentionally killed the victim "by shooting the said person with a firearm; by cutting and stabbing the said person with a knife; by striking and hitting the said person about the head and body with a baseball bat; and dismembering the victim’s body and placing the remains into a storage bin."RELATED: Woman missing for over a year found buried beneath garage after chilling tip from suspected killer's friend: DA Police arrested Ramos on May 12 and Esparza on May 13.Both suspects were booked into the Midland County Detention Center, and both were held on $2 million bonds.Ramos and Esparza were charged with first-degree murder, according to KOSA-TV.Citing the Midland County Sheriff's Office, KWES-TV reported that a third suspect — 49-year-old Jose Luis Garcia Grimaldo — was arrested May 14.According to KWES, Grimaldo told detectives he had been at the residence on May 10 to confront the victim — later identified as Victor Nunez.Grimaldo informed investigators that he struck the victim with a baseball bat and punched him several times with a closed fist, the affidavit said.Grimaldo stressed that the victim was alive when he left the residence, according to court docs.However, Grimaldo was charged with murder and a second-degree felony count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, KWES reported.Grimaldo was being held at the Midland County Detention Center on a bond of $2.25 million.The investigation is ongoing.The Midland County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to Blaze News' request for comment.Like Blaze News? 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A federal judge ruled in favor of a Salvadoran illegal alien and dismissed smuggling charges after accusing the Trump administration of unfairly retaliating against him.Kilmar Abrego Garcia has become a cause célèbre of the left after he was scooped up by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to be deported after living in Maryland for more than a decade.'Only after Abrego succeeded in vindicating his rights did the Executive Branch reopen that investigation.'The Trump administration was forced by a federal judge to bring Garcia back to the U.S. in April 2025, but then immediately turned around and charged him with smuggling crimes related to an arrest incident in 2022.On Friday, U.S. District Judge Waverly Crenshaw agreed with Garcia's defense that the Trump administration's prosecution was acting out of vindictiveness against him.Crenshaw gave the government attorneys space to argue against the finding but concluded eventually that "the evidence before this Court sadly reflects an abuse of prosecuting power."While the judge said there was not enough evidence to prove actual vindictiveness, he said the government did not argue well enough against the "retaliatory taint" alleged by the defense."The Court does not reach its conclusion lightly," the judge wrote. "The objective evidence here shows that, absent Abrego's successful lawsuit challenging his removal to El Salvador, the Government would not have brought this prosecution. The Executive Branch closed its investigation on the November 2022 traffic stop. Only after Abrego succeeded in vindicating his rights did the Executive Branch reopen that investigation."A spokesperson for the Justice Department said the department would appeal the decision.The media had come to the defense of Garcia from the beginning and was mocked for identifying him as a "Maryland man" in headlines in order to garner sympathy for his plight.His family pleaded in the media that he was not a violent criminal and was a good husband and father, before it was revealed that he was reported for domestic violence.RELATED: VIDEO: Democrat melts down during hearing over evidence that Kilmar Garcia is an MS-13 gang member During a hearing about the case, a Justice Department attorney admitted in court that Garcia had been deported to El Salvador due to a clerical mistake. That attorney was later suspended and has since become a vocal critic of the administration's legal policies.Garcia has been accused by the Trump administration of being an MS-13 criminal gang member, but he has denied the allegations.Judge Crenshaw was nominated to the court by former President Barack Obama in 2015. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

A retired police officer said he missed his wedding anniversary and the birth of his granddaughter because he was in jail for refusing to take down a meme from Facebook about the death of Charlie Kirk.Larry Bushart, 61, received $835,000 in a settlement on Wednesday after suing Perry County Sheriff Nick Weems over the incident.'Respect the First Amendment today, or be prepared to pay the price tomorrow.' Bushart posted several memes after Kirk was shot and killed in Sept. 2025. One of the memes quoted President Donald Trump on a separate shooting case where he said, "We have to get over it."While Weems admitted that some of Bushart's posts were protected by free speech rights, he claimed that this particular post had caused people to fear the possibility of political violence.The meme referenced the president's comments about a shooting at Perry High School in Iowa, but the sheriff said it made people believe Weems was calling for a shooting at Perry County High School in Tennessee."This has everything to do with a guy coming onto a Perry County page posting this picture leading people in our community to believe that there was a hypothetical Perry County High School shooting that caused fear in our community — and we done something about it," Weems said to WTVF-TV in Oct. 2025.When Bushart was arrested, he was informed about the threat to a school."At a school?" Bushart responded. "I play on Facebook. I threatened no one."The sheriff admitted that the police knew Bushart was referring to a different school but added that the public did not know that.Weems put Bushart in jail, and a local judge set his bail at $2 million.After 37 days, the felony charge was dropped and Bushart was set free.Bushart also said he lost his post-retirement job while in jail."I am pleased my First Amendment rights have been vindicated," Bushart said after the settlement was reached. "The people's freedom to participate in civil discourse is crucial to a healthy democracy. I am looking forward to moving on and spending time with my family."RELATED: Beto O'Rourke blames 'powerful memes' and Democratic incompetence for 'incredible performance' of Trump among Mexican-Americans Cary Davis, an attorney for the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, praised the ruling as a warning to other government officials. FIRE represented Bushart in the case."It's in times of turmoil and heightened tensions that our national commitment to free speech is tested the most," Davis said."When government officials fail that test, the Constitution exists to hold them accountable," Davis added. "Our hope is that Larry's settlement sends a message to law enforcement across the country: Respect the First Amendment today, or be prepared to pay the price tomorrow."Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!