Category: Human Rights

The Nigerian military authorities said this week they had completed investigations into an erroneous Army airstrike in Tundun Biri Community, Kaduna state, which killed 85 people and injured dozens more in December 2023. Two officers have been indicted over the attack and will face court martial with the military’s disciplinary process. While this announcement may […]

Earlier this week, the Special Criminal Court (SCC) of the Central African Republic issued an arrest warrant for former president François Bozizé. He is charged with crimes against humanity allegedly committed between February 2009 and March 23, 2013, by the Presidential Guard and other security services at the Bossembelé military training center, referred to as […]

Torrential rains could worsen with the arrival of Tropical Cyclone Hidaya, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) warned on Friday.  Prepare for impact  The tropical cyclone is the first of its kind to develop in eastern Africa and is due to have a “very big impact”, WMO spokesperson Clare Nullis told journalists in Geneva. She said Tanzania was expected to suffer in particular […]

(New York) – Human Rights Watch will present a podcast twice a month starting May 6, 2024, that will explore human rights hotspots around the world through the eyes and ears of people on the front lines. Rights & Wrongs will take listeners behind the scenes of in-depth Human Rights Watch investigations.  Human Rights Watch […]

For Immediate ReleaseMay 2, 2024 STATEMENT BY ADMINISTRATOR SAMANTHA POWER USAID Will Provide Nearly $55 Million to Address Dire Humanitarian Crisis in Burkina Faso  Growing conflict and a dire humanitarian crisis in Burkina Faso is unfolding in communities cut off from the world’s view.  Human Rights Watch recently documented horrific first-hand accounts that the Burkinabe military forces […]

 “Historic,” said the activist Haris Azhar, describing Indonesia’s Constitutional Court ruling in March to revoke three false news and defamation clauses from the country’s 1946 criminal code. The judges wanted to protect human rights, he said, and they found that the code’s vague definition of “fake news” could be used to punish legitimate criticism of […]

(Bangkok) – The Thai government should urgently bring to justice officials responsible for the deaths and injuries of scores of ethnic Malay Muslim protesters in Tak Bai district in 2004, Human Rights Watch said today. A failure to do so will call into question Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin’s pledge to strengthen the rule of law […]

(Nairobi) – Kenyan authorities have not responded adequately to flash floods resulting from heavy rains, Human Rights Watch said today. The floods have left at least 170 people dead; displaced more than 200,000; destroyed property, infrastructure, and livelihoods across the country; and exacerbated socioeconomic vulnerabilities. Kenya’s government has a human rights obligation to prevent foreseeable […]

(Kyiv, May 2, 2024) – Russian forces appear to have executed at least 15 Ukrainian soldiers as they attempted to surrender, and possibly six more who were surrendering or who had surrendered, since early December 2023, Human Rights Watch said today. These incidents should be investigated as war crimes. “Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, […]

(Washington, DC, May 02, 2024) – Governments concerned about autonomous weapons systems – so-called killer robots – should urgently act to start negotiations on a new international treaty to ban and regulate them, Human Rights Watch said today. Such weapons would select and use force against targets based on sensor processing rather than human inputs. […]