Category: Human Rights

In the early hours of Sunday, 27 July, militants from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) launched a brutal assault on a church in Komanda, Ituri province, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), killing at least 40 people. Many victims were children participating in a religious vigil organized by the Eucharistic Crusade. Details of the Attack […]

Now, governments have committed to close that gap by 2030. At the conclusion of the Third Ministerial Conference on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics in Asia and the Pacific, leaders adopted a renewed declaration to strengthen national civil registration systems – the foundational mechanisms that register births, deaths and other vital events. The move extends […]

(Sydney, July 30, 2025) – The Australian government should create a dedicated Whistleblower Protection Authority to support and protect public-interest whistleblowers, Human Rights Watch said in a recent submission to the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee of the Australian Senate. Since February 2025, the committee has been considering the proposed Whistleblower Protection Authority Bill 2025. It […]

According to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) platform, two out of three famine thresholds have been reached in Gaza: plummeting food consumption and acute malnutrition. There is mounting evidence that “widespread starvation, malnutrition and disease” are driving a rise in hunger-related deaths, which is the third famine indicator. “It’s clearly a disaster unfolding in […]

In response to escalating international condemnation over widespread starvation in Gaza, the Israeli military has announced a daily “tactical pause” in combat operations across three key areas—Gaza City, Deir al-Balah, and Al-Mawasi—from 10:00 to 20:00 local time, effective immediately. The move aims to facilitate humanitarian access and increase the flow of aid to the besieged […]

(Beirut) – Drone strikes on five oil fields in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) by unknown groups between July 14 and 16, 2025, significantly damaged the region’s energy production, Human Rights Watch said today. The drone strikes mark a dangerous escalation in a long-running dispute between Baghdad and Erbil over the control and distribution […]

Under cooler skies after days of intense heat, the run ended where it all began, at the original UN Charter – the document that launched the Organization and reshaped the modern international order – now on display at UN Headquarters. Inside the General Assembly Hall, delegates gathered to commemorate the 80th anniversary of its signing. […]

(Washington, DC) – Venezuelan authorities are carrying out widespread abuses against critics through politically motivated arrests, a year after the presidential election, Human Rights Watch said today. Hours after polls closed on July 28, 2024, the Electoral Council declared that Nicolás Maduro had been re-elected. International observers criticized the process for lacking transparency and integrity, and questioned the announced […]

Israeli authorities have stepped up measures to transfer large numbers of people from long-standing Palestinian towns and communities, according to OHCHR’s office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. On 18 June, the High Planning Council in the Israeli Civil Administration issued a directive to reject all building and planning permits submitted by Palestinians in Masafer Yatta, […]

(Nairobi) – The African Union’s (AU) appointment of Burundi’s president as its special envoy for the Sahel region strengthens the AU’s capacity to address the most pressing human rights challenges facing Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, Human Rights Watch said today in a letter to President Evariste Ndayishimiye.  The appointment of Ndayishimiye on July 17, […]