Category: Human Rights

Islamist armed groups and Malian armed forces have killed and otherwise abused numerous civilians in central and northern Mali since April 2023. Violence has intensified across Mali following the May 2021 coup. The targeted killing of civilians by Islamist armed groups and the Malian army are war crimes. Malian authorities, with international support, should urgently conduct […]

The United States government has imposed a ban on financial transactions involving the Myanmar state-owned oil company, the Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE), in a long overdue move aimed at stanching the junta’s atrocities. MOGE’s natural gas projects generate over US$1 billion annually for the Myanmar junta, its single largest source of foreign revenue. […]

(Beirut) – The Egyptian authorities have arbitrarily detained and prosecuted dozens of peaceful protesters in demonstrations since the beginning of October 2023, Human Rights Watch said today. The authorities should remove overwhelming restrictions on the right to peaceful assembly, release all those detained solely for joining or calling for peaceful protests, and drop charges against […]

(Jerusalem) – The Israeli government’s bombardment, blockade, and major ground offensive in Gaza is having a devastating toll on Palestinian civilians with disabilities, Human Rights Watch said today. They face greater difficulties fleeing attacks and accessing desperately needed necessities and humanitarian aid. The grave risks all civilians in Gaza face from the Israeli military operations […]

(New York) – Witnesses have accused the Bangladesh police of unnecessary use of force during political protests on October 28, 2023, Human Rights Watch said today. Although violence was committed on all sides, the events were part of a continuing police crackdown on the political opposition. At least 11 people, including two police officers, were killed, and hundreds injured […]

This week, Brazil’s Congress held an important public hearing on harassment against teachers for topics they address in the classroom. Sponsored by lawmakers Talíria Petrone, Erika Hilton, and Luciene Cavalcante, it was the first such hearing held by the Education and Human Rights committees of the Chamber of Deputies. For about a decade, federal, state, […]

In a landmark ruling on Monday, a Japanese high court found the North Korean government liable for human rights violations against Koreans and Japanese citizens it had enticed to relocate to North Korea through its “Paradise on Earth” campaign. The ruling comes a decade after 81-year-old Eiko Kawsaki and three others first sought justice for […]

PLSMW and HRP Announce Joint Fellowship in Honor of Neelan Tiruchelvam The Human Rights Program (HRP) and Program on Law and Society in the Muslim World (PLSMW) at Harvard Law School are honored to announce the launch of the Neelan Tiruchelvam Memorial Fellowship. The Fellowship will provide opportunities for outstanding legal scholars and practitioners of […]

Since the end of the conflict against the Islamic State in 2018, the humanitarian crisis in Iraq has evolved from an acute crisis to a protracted one. The conflict forced 6 million people to leave their homes between 2014 and 2017. Although 5 million people have returned, some 1.2 million Iraqis remain uprooted. About 400,000 […]

I first met Pamela (not her real name) in a spiritual healing center, known as a “prayer camp,” during my first visit to Ghana in November 2022. She was locked up in what looked like a prison cell, where she had been for more than a year on the basis of her real or perceived […]