Author: Human Rights Watch

The Minsk City Court sentenced human rights lawyer Dmitri Laevski on September 9 to three years in prison for “aiding an extremist organization” and “discrediting” Belarus. Laevski has represented high-profile political prisoners, including opposition politician Viktar Babaryka and lawyer Maksim Znak. Laevski was charged with “aiding extremism” in connection with an interview he gave to […]

Those reporting on Russia are rarely surprised these days to learn that another critic of the Russian government is being prosecuted over alleged involvement with a “foreign undesirable organization.” But even in Russia, the case against Olga Sibireva rises to new heights of absurdity. Sibireva is an expert on religious freedom at SOVA Center, a […]

(Nairobi) – Criminal gangs in Kenya have carried out a spate of violent attacks targeting civil society and opposition gatherings ahead of the 2027 elections, Human Rights Watch said today. The Kenyan authorities should ensure prompt and transparent investigations into the attacks and that people can exercise their political rights without fear of violence. Over the […]

(New York) – The Punjab provincial assembly in Pakistan on August 31, 2026, passed a bill that would threaten the right to a fair trial in counterterrorism proceedings, Human Rights Watch said today. The provincial governor should return the bill to the assembly, which should develop rights-respecting protections for such proceedings, subject to independent oversight. The Anti-Terrorism […]

A court in Azerbaijan on September 7 sentenced the prominent human rights defender and election monitor Anar Mammadli to 13 years in prison following a trial marred by serious due process violations. His co-defendant, civic activist Anar Abdullayev, received a 12-year sentence. Mammadli, 48, spent more than two years in pretrial detention before the Baku […]

Within a span of only five months, between March 18 and the end of August 2026, Iran’s authorities announced the executions of 29 people in connection with recent protests. These executions were unlawful and in violation of international human rights law. Several protesters executed were teenagers aged 18 and 19. Scores more remain at imminent […]

Without warning, Pakistan has directed all medical and dental institutions to expel Afghan students and arrange to send them back to Afghanistan. It is the latest move by Pakistani authorities to summarily deport Afghans from the country. Especially for Afghan women students, being returned to Afghanistan ends their chances of ever becoming doctors or dentists, as […]

(Sydney) – The Australian government has caused thousands of people seeking asylum to suffer grave abuses under its offshore detention system, which began in September 2001, Human Rights Watch said today. Over the past 25 years, Australia has forcibly transferred more than 5,000 asylum seekers to Naoero (formerly called Nauru) and Manus Island, Papua New […]

A military court in Jakarta reduced the prison sentences and overturned the dishonorable discharge of two of the four military personnel convicted for the March 2026 acid attack against human rights activist Andrie Yunus.  The appellate decision, dated August 20, reduced the sentences of 2nd Sgt. Edi Sudarko and 1st Lt. Budhi Hariyanto Widhi Cahyono of […]

Chinese lawyer Ruth Wang fled to Taiwan on September 2 after authorities threatened to shut down her law firm. Her offense? Representing members of China’s Zion Church, a prominent underground Protestant congregation. While founding pastor Ezra Jin was freed from custody in July following high-level US intervention, eight other church members have remained wrongfully detained since their October […]