In Sudan, sick and starving children ‘wasting away’

As heavy fighting continues between former allies the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and their allies, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), said that in parts of North Darfur more than half of all children are acutely malnourished. The warning follows the release of new data from the IPC, a UN-backed global food […]

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Italy, Hungary’s Snub of ICC Arrests Should be a Wake-Up Call for the EU

For the second time in less than a year, the International Criminal Court (ICC) has referred an EU member to its oversight body, the Assembly of States Parties, for failing to cooperate with the court. On January 26, ICC judges asked the court’s member countries to hold Italy to account for refusing to surrender Osama Elmasry Njeem, […]

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EU allocates over €123 million in humanitarian aid for Latin America and Caribbean in 2026

In a year of shrinking global aid, the EU is choosing solidarity, delivering life-saving aid and standing by international humanitarian law. This year, it will provide €123,3 million in humanitarian aid to deliver life-saving humanitarian assistance to the most vulnerable people in Latin America and the Caribbean. Part of this aid will also bolster disaster […]

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Georgia Initiates Laws Severely Curtailing Civil and Political Rights

Georgia’s ruling party proposed on January 28 a new package of legislation that would criminalize core civic activity and erect sweeping barriers to political participation. If adopted, the draft laws would make it a criminal offense to receive foreign funding without prior government authorization, punishable by up to six years in prison. The bill defines a […]

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Niger: Military Drone Strike Kills 17 Civilians

(Nairobi) – An apparent Nigerien military drone strike killed at least 17 civilians, including 4 children, and injured at least 13 others at a crowded market in western Niger on January 6, 2026, Human Rights Watch said today. The strike, which also killed three Islamist fighters, violated laws-of-war prohibitions against indiscriminate attacks and might amount to […]

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Yemen: Houthis Arbitrarily Detain, Disappear Christians

(Beirut) – Houthi authorities have arbitrarily arrested over 20 Christians in Yemen over the last three months, Human Rights Watch said today. The Houthis should immediately release them, along with the hundreds of others they are arbitrarily detaining across the areas of Yemen under their control. “Rather than addressing the alarming rates of hunger that […]

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International Outcry Follows Jimmy Lai Landmark 20 Years Jail Sentence

HONG KONG — The sentencing of pro-democracy advocate Jimmy Lai to 20 years in prison has ignited a firestorm of international disapproval, with world leaders and human rights advocates labeling the verdict a definitive blow to judicial independence. The 78-year-old founder of Apple Daily was convicted under the National Security Law, a move critics maintain […]

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EU: Rights Failings Undermine Democracy, Rule of Law

(Brussels, February 4, 2026) – European Union institutions and member states’ failure to prioritize human rights undermines the rule of law, democratic space, and rights protection at home and abroad, Human Rights Watch said today in its World Report 2026. A focus on deterring migration, combined with the normalization of anti-gender, anti-migrant, and anti-democratic narratives, inconsistent enforcement of […]

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Türkiye: Government Targets Main Opposition

(Istanbul, February 4, 2025) – The Turkish government deepened its assault on the main opposition party during 2025, while at the same time pursuing an end to the four-decade conflict with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), Human Rights Watch said today in its World Report 2026. “The Erdoğan government has spent the past year attempting […]

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China: Repression Deepens, Extends Abroad

(Bangkok) – The Chinese government intensified its repression across the country in 2025, Human Rights Watch said today in its World Report 2026.  President Xi Jinping mobilized the government to impose strict ideological conformity and loyalty to him and the Chinese Communist Party. Tibetans, Uyghurs, and other communities with distinct identities, including members of unofficial churches, face […]

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