Author: Human Rights Watch

Burkina Faso authorities on October 6 released Rasmané Zinaba and Bassirou Badjo, two members of the civil society group Balai Citoyen, who had been unlawfully conscripted into military service after criticizing the country’s military junta.  Their release is an encouraging if not unprecedented development in a country where the government has increasingly violated human rights since the 2022 military […]

On October 9, the Bangladesh authorities filed charges against 28 people  for enforced disappearances, secret detention, and torture. It was a long time coming. A “smear campaign,” the home minister had scoffed in 2017, after Human Rights Watch released a report on secret detentions and enforced disappearances in Bangladesh. When I had met with him, the minister, Asaduzzaman Khan, […]

(Beirut) – A Tunisian court sentenced a man to death last week for peaceful Facebook posts, Human Rights Watch said today. He received a presidential pardon days later, but this is an unprecedented sentence for nonviolent expression in Tunisia. Tunisian authorities should stop detaining and prosecuting people solely for exercising their right of expression. Saber […]

(New York) – The Chinese government should drop the baseless charges against the artist Gao Zhen (高兟) and allow him and his family to return to the United States, Human Rights Watch said today. Gao’s family said the 69-year-old artist, a permanent US resident, is in poor health and had fainted in September 2025. Chinese authorities […]

The United Nations Human Rights Council on October 6 extended a project to gather evidence of human rights violations and war crimes associated with Sri Lanka’s civil war for at least two more years. The resolution adopted by consensus offers a ray of hope to victims of abuses and their families that they may one […]

(Jerusalem) – United States President Donald Trump’s “Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict,” announced on September 29, 2025, is no substitute for the urgent action governments need to take to protect civilians and support justice after two years of grave abuses in Israel and Palestine, Human Rights Watch said today.  The 20-part plan does not directly address […]

(Washington, DC) – The United States Department of Health and Human Services under the Trump administration appears to be letting politicized and ideological priorities impact the availability of health-related information, Human Rights Watch said today. Respecting and fulfilling the right to health requires a credible, evidence-led process that enables people to make informed decisions about their […]

On September 17, the Chadian authorities published a decree purporting to strip blogger Makaila Nguebla and journalist Charfadine Galmaye Saleh of their nationality. The move marks a chilling escalation in the repression of dissent. By wielding citizenship as a political weapon, the government not only violates international law but crosses a line that threatens the rights of […]

A Congolese military court’s conviction and death sentence imposed on former President Joseph Kabila on September 30 highlights the fragile balance between accountability and political stability in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The trial, for charges ranging from treason to war crimes, had all the trappings of a political vendetta, posing a threat to both the rule […]

(New York) – United Nations member states meeting on September 30, 2025, on the plight of Rohingya Muslims should commit to urgent action to protect them from persecution and violence, Human Rights Watch said today. Rohingya in Myanmar, Bangladesh, and across Asia continue to face grave threats to their safety, freedom, and lives. The UN General Assembly is […]