Category: Human Rights

Kosovo’s press freedom has plummeted to its lowest point in over 15 years, dropping to 99th place in the 2025 Reporters Without Borders (RSF) Press Freedom Index. This marks a significant decline from 56th place in 2023 and 75th in 2024, positioning Kosovo among the worst performers in Europe and the Western Balkans . Key […]

Brussels, May 2025 –The European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Kaja Kallas, has called on Israel to immediately lift its blockade on humanitarian aid to Gaza, now in its ninth consecutive week, warning that the obstruction violates international law and exacerbates civilian suffering. In a phone conversation with Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar on […]

Sweida, Syria – May 2025:In the latest blow to press freedom in Syria, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has strongly condemned a series of violent assaults on seven journalists in the southwestern city of Sweida. The journalists, who had traveled to the region to cover a newly signed local de-escalation agreement, were detained, threatened at gunpoint, […]

In an important step towards protecting online speech, Indonesia’s Constitutional Court on April 29 issued two rulings that provide important clarifications to the country’s Electronic Information and Transaction Law, used to regulate the internet. For decades, government officials and powerful private actors, including companies and religious groups, have brought criminal defamation lawsuits under the internet law to […]

Ambassadors met for an emergency session to discuss the escalation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Rights chief Volker Türk said he was pained to brief the Council once again on the “catastrophic suffering of people in Gaza,” noting that “the temporary relief of the ceasefire, which gave Palestinians a moment to breathe, has been shattered.”  […]

Major-power cutbacks and delayed payments amidst conflict and insecurity are testing the very principles and frameworks upon which the international human rights infrastructure was built nearly 80 years ago. Human rights need defending now more than ever, which is why the United Nations leadership needs to ensure that its efforts to cut costs don’t jeopardize […]

The Press Emblem Campaign (PEC) has issued a strong call for action against the killings of journalists worldwide, revealing that 55 media professionals have been murdered since January 1, 2025. The statement, released on World Press Freedom Day (May 3), underscores the urgent need to protect journalists from censorship, harassment, and violence. Rising Toll of […]

The 28 March quakes killed over 3,800 people and damaged or destroyed more than 55,000 homes across multiple regions, including Bago, Kayin, Magway, Mandalay, Southern Shan, Naypyitaw and Sagaing. Families already displaced by years of conflict now face early torrential rains, extreme heat and rising risk of disease. Nearly 20 million people – more than […]

A group of independent UN human rights experts has issued an urgent appeal for the release of political detainees with disabilities and serious health conditions in Belarus. The call, made on May 5, follows mounting concerns over inhumane detention conditions, lack of medical care, and deliberate mistreatment of prisoners linked to the 2020 presidential elections. […]

The UK Court of Appeal has upheld a ruling declaring 2023 protest regulations unlawful, delivering a significant blow to legislation that civil liberties groups argued undermined the right to protest and bypassed Parliament’s authority. Legal Challenge and Court Ruling The case, brought by Liberty, challenged the secondary legislation introduced by then Home Secretary Suella Braverman, […]