Author: Human Rights Watch

Forces belonging to the Houthis, who control much of Yemen, raided several United Nations offices and detained at least 19 UN staff on August 31, adding to dozens of UN and civil society staff already detained since 2024. The previous arrests have led to a suspension of UN aid, endangering the lives of many Yemenis […]

(Johannesburg, September 4, 2025) – A South African-owned company is providing access to toxic lead-bearing waste in the Zambian city of Kabwe despite immense health risks for local residents, Human Rights Watch said today. The material derives from waste material at a former mine that has never been cleaned up and has been the source […]

Pacific leaders preparing to gather for the Pacific Islands Forum in Solomon Islands this month have accepted a collective responsibility: to act decisively for the many Indigenous communities already living the sobering realities of climate displacement. Over the last decades, abnormally high “king tides” and storms forced one such community, the Solomon Islander people of […]

Momentum is mounting for a new global treaty to secure every child’s right to free education. This week, countries gathered at the United Nations in Geneva to advance negotiations on an optional protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The proposed treaty would close a gap in international law. The convention guarantees free primary […]

(Istanbul, September 4, 2025) – The trial of 13 law enforcement officers charged with the death in custody of Ahmet Güreşçi and the torture of his older brother Sabri Güreşçi on February 11, 2023, offers a rare opportunity for justice, Human Rights Watch said today. The first hearing in the trial begins on September 9, […]

As the Chinese government celebrated the 80th anniversary of China’s victory in World War II and the country’s military might this week, criticism of the Chinese Communist Party’s human rights record is building.  For 50 minutes on August 29, large slogans projected on a building in Chongqing, one of China’s major cities, urged the Chinese people to […]

(Bangkok) – Cambodia’s National Assembly passed amendments to its citizenship law on August 25, 2025, that allow the government to silence dissent by reworking Cambodian citizenship, Human Rights Watch said today. The amended citizenship law strips nationals, naturalized citizens, and dual citizens of the most basic protections of nationality if convicted by ruling Cambodia People’s Party-controlled […]

(Beirut) – The United Kingdom government should publicly pledge to incorporate strong human rights conditions before a Free Trade Agreement between the UK and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is signed, a coalition of 14 human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch, and trade unions said in a letter to Prime Minister Keir Starmer today.  […]

The Washington Post reports that the US government is requiring organizations receiving federal funding, including from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), not to “operate any program that benefits illegal immigrants” in the aftermath of disasters. But the foundational principle of human rights is that everyone, regardless of race, religion, nationality, or legal status, is entitled, […]

Last week, Belarusian authorities declared the Belarusian Association of Human Rights Lawyers (BAHRL) an “extremist formation.” The action against the group, which works to protect the rights to a defense and a fair trial, is the latest attack on the country’s legal profession. Since its formation by exiled Belarusian lawyers arbitrarily deprived of their right […]