Category: Human Rights

Hopes rose last week in Damascus when fuel prices dropped instantly following Donald Trump’s move to end punitive sanctions. But after more than 13 years of civil war that ended with the fall of the Assad regime last December, ordinary Syrians face an exhausting list of other problems. These include an absence of housing – […]

Baghdad, Iraq – May 2025 — United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has called for a permanent ceasefire, the unconditional release of all hostages, and the unimpeded delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, amid ongoing conflict and humanitarian crisis in the region. Speaking at the opening of the 34th Arab League Summit in Baghdad, […]

(New York) – The United Nations General Assembly should establish a new body to examine the connections between the North Korean government’s repressive system and its military programs and nuclear weapons development, Human Rights Watch said today. On May 20, the General Assembly will hold a special high-level plenary session on North Korea. In the December 2024 resolution […]

France has filed a lawsuit against Iran at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in a bid to secure the release of two French nationals detained by the Islamic Republic. Cécile Kohler, a modern literature teacher, and her partner Jacques Paris were arrested on May 8, 2022, while visiting Iran as tourists. The couple has […]

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk strongly condemned Mali’s recent decree banning political parties, describing it as a “draconian” violation of fundamental rights. Türk warned that the law could further silence political dissent and institutionalize repression in the country. In his statement on Friday, Türk called for the immediate repeal of the decree […]

Each called for justice under international law and for perpetrators to be held accountable. Sung-Eui Lee, daughter of a South Korean man abducted by North Korean forces during the Korean War, and Ruby Chen, father of an Israeli soldier taken by Hamas during the 7 October 2023 attacks on Israel, spoke in the Security Council. […]

May 17, 2025 — In a statement released Friday, Amnesty International called on Syria’s newly established government to address the country’s legacy of human rights violations through a comprehensive agenda of justice, truth, and reparation. The appeal comes amid hopes that the political transition, following the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in late 2024, could […]

May 16, 2025 — As the 30th anniversary of the disappearance of the 11th Panchen Lama approaches this Saturday, Human Rights Watch (HRW) has renewed calls for China to release Gendun Choekyi Nyima and his parents, who have been missing since 1995, shortly after the Dalai Lama recognized the then six-year-old boy as the reincarnation […]

Beaver, West Virginia – May 16, 2025 — A former lieutenant at the Southern Regional Jail in Beaver, West Virginia, has been sentenced to 17 years in federal prison for orchestrating a cover-up of a fatal assault on an inmate by correctional officers under his supervision. Chad Lester, the former supervisor, was convicted in January […]

(New York) – Chadian authorities arrested Succès Masra, the former prime minister and leader of Chad’s main opposition party, at his residence in N’Djamena early on May 16, 2025, Human Rights Watch said today. Masra’s arrest raises concerns of escalating harassment and threats against the opposition party Les Transformateurs (The Transformers) as well as other political […]