• The lobby of the Divan Hotel near Taksim Sqaure in Istanbul, Turkey after police teargassed the entrance on June 15, 2013.
    © 2013 İsmail Saymaz
    Turkey: A Weekend of Police Abuse
    The Erdoğan government’s use of force in a clampdown on protesters over the weekend has precipitated a deepening human rights and political crisis in Turkey. Human Rights Watch documented a huge wave of arbitrary detentions and police attacks on people who were on hospital premises, as well as on a hospital itself and on makeshift health clinics. With the trade union confederations declaring a strike on June 17, 2013, there were signs of further clampdown on demonstrations in the evening.
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Europe/Central Asia

  • Iraq/Jordan/Turkey: Syrians Blocked from Fleeing War
    Jul 1, 2013
    Iraqi, Jordanian, and Turkish border guards are pushing back tens of thousands of people trying to flee Syria. Iraq, Jordan, and Turkey have either closed numerous border crossings entirely or allowed only limited numbers of Syrians to cross, leaving tens of thousands stranded in dangerous conditions in Syria’s conflict-ridden border regions. Only Lebanon has an open border policy for Syrians fleeing the conflict.
  • Saudi Arabia: 7 Convicted for Facebook Postings About Protests
    Jun 29, 2013
    Saudi Arabia sentenced seven government critics to prison on June 24, 2013, for allegedly inciting protests and harming public order, largely by using Facebook. The Specialized Criminal Court sentenced the men, all from the Kingdom’s Eastern Province, to prison terms ranging from five to 10 years and barred them from travelling abroad for additional periods.
  • EU/Bahrain: EU Should Demand Release of Activists
    Jun 28, 2013
    European Union (EU) High Representative Catherine Ashton should pursue with Bahrain the immediate release of 13 high-profile activists and others detained or imprisoned for peacefully exercising their rights. Ashton will attend an EU-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) ministerial meeting in Bahrain on June 30, 2013.
  • UK: Provide Clear Answers on Data Surveillance
    Jun 28, 2013
    Reports that the United Kingdom’s intelligence agency has intercepted and collected vast amounts of Internet and phone data raise serious concerns that the government has breached the privacy rights of millions of people in the UK and elsewhere.
  • Russia: Annul Guilty Verdict Against Aleftina Khorinyak and Lidia Tabarintseva
    Jun 28, 2013
    Human Rights Watch writes to the prosecutor general of Russia to express its concerns about the May 20, 2013 conviction of Aleftina Khorinyak and Lidia Tabarintseva on charges of illegal trafficking of potent substances (article 234 part 3of the Russian Criminal Code) and forgery of documents (article 327 part 2) for helping a terminally ill man, Mr. Viktor Sechin, who was in constant severe pain, obtain opioid pain medicines.
  • Hungary Testing Europe’s Resolve on Rights
    Jun 28, 2013
    Hungary’s troubling record on rights is putting Europe to the test. How to respond to Budapest’s continued refusal to heed repeated calls for reform following critical assessments by a growing number of expert bodies has turned into a major preoccupation for Europe’s policymakers and parliamentarians.
  • Letter to Croatian Prime Minister Zoran Milanović
    Jun 28, 2013
    Croatia’s accession to the EU includes assuming the obligation to respect the principles of human dignity, democracy, and human rights as enshrined in the EU Treaty and further outlined in the legally binding Charter of Fundamental Rights. The government should use the formal accession as an opportunity to further strengthen the protection of human rights in several areas of concern and implement necessary measures to improve legislation and practices.
  • Croatia: No Let Up on Rights Abuses
    Jun 28, 2013
    Croatia’s European Union (EU) accession on July 1 is an opportunity for the government to show its commitment to safeguard human rights and to properly address outstanding abuses in the country, Human Rights Watch said today in an open letter to the Croatian prime minister, Zoran Milanović.
  • Central African Republic: Seleka Forces Kill Scores, Burn Villages
    Jun 27, 2013
    Members of the Seleka rebel coalition, which overthrew President François Bozizé of the Central African Republic on March 24, 2013, have targeted and killed at least 40 civilians, and intentionally destroyed 34 villages or towns since February. Human Rights Watch researchers in early June found extensive evidence of rampant abuses in largely rural areas outside the capital, Bangui.
  • UK: Raise Rights During Kazakhstan Visit
    Jun 27, 2013
    Consistent with the UK’s stated commitment to make human rights a central focus of its foreign policy, it is essential to convey to the government of Kazakhstan your deep concern about serious and continuing rights violations there and the need for the government to take decisive action to address them.
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