A group of international non-governmental organizations calls on the European Union to take the lead in initiating stronger international action to break the links between the mineral trade and the continuing conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

A group of nongovernmental organizations write in support of the application of Adel Abdul Hakim for a residence permit on humanitarian grounds in Sweden. The organizations respectfully request that the Swedish Migration Board evaluate the totality of the circumstances surrounding Mr. Hakim’s claim for resettlement and consider that the rights of recognized refugees, the right to family reunification, and the prohibition against torture so clearly implicated in his case strongly favor a positive decision on his application.

The European Parliament should condemn European complicity in the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) program of “extraordinary renditions” and secret detention of prisoners, Human Rights Watch said today.

The United Nations’ ruling that Sweden violated the global torture ban in its involvement in the CIA transfer of an asylum seeker to Egypt is an important step toward establishing accountability for European governments complicit in illegal US renditions, Human Rights Watch said today.

On behalf of Human Rights Watch, I write to protest Sweden’s decision, announced on September 29, to resume deportations of rejected lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) asylum-seekers to Iran. The decision reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of the human rights conditions in Iran; the stated rationale for it reflects an equally basic incomprehension of the essential need of all people—whatever their sexualities—to lead lives in honesty, free from fear.

As the Netherlands mulls resuming deportations of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender asylum seekers back to Iran, and Sweden begins such deportations again, both European governments must adhere to their international legal obligations not to send people back to the risk of torture, Human Rights Watch said today.

Human Rights Watch commends the collective call by the European Union to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center that was made at the E.U.-U.S. summit last month.

European governments should take concrete steps to help close the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Human Rights Watch said today in a letter sent to EU foreign ministers. sent to EU foreign ministers.