• Kenya: Somalia Unsafe for Refugees to Return
    Press release
    Mar 30, 2012
    Kenyan authorities should not return refugees to Somalia because of ongoing fighting and abuses against civilians in areas controlled by Kenyan forces and allied militias. Instead of claiming that “newly liberated areas” are safe for refugee return, Kenyan authorities should reopen the screening center at Liboi and resume registration of new refugees to ensure they receive assistance.
  • Somalia: Pro-Government Militias Executing Civilians
    Press release
    Mar 28, 2012
    Pro-government militias in Somalia have committed summary executions and torture in the towns of Beletweyne and Baidoa since occupying them with Ethiopian forces earlier in 2012.
  • Somalia: Investigate Attacks on Journalists
    Press release
    Mar 1, 2012
    The Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of Somalia should promptly investigate the killing of the Somali journalist Abukar Hassan Mohamoud by unknown gunmen.
  • Somalia: Warring Parties Put Children at Grave Risk
    Press release
    Feb 21, 2012
    Somalia’s warring parties have all failed to protect Somali children from the fighting or serving in their forces, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. The Islamist insurgent group al-Shabaab has increasingly targeted children for recruitment, forced marriage, and rape, and attacked teachers and schools.
  • Kenya: Security Forces Abusing Civilians Near Somalia Border
    Press release
    Jan 12, 2012
    The Kenyan security forces are beating and arbitrarily detaining citizens and Somali refugees in Kenya’s North Eastern province, which borders on Somalia, despite repeated pledges to stop such abuses.
  • Somaliland: End Forced Return of Refugees
    Press release
    Jan 4, 2012
    The Somaliland authorities should cease forcibly returning refugees and asylum seekers to possible persecution in Ethiopia. On December 28, authorities returned 20 Ethiopian refugees and asylum seekers in violation of the fundamental international refugee law prohibition against “refoulement,” the forcible return of anyone to persecution or to a place where their life or freedom is threatened.
  • Kenya: Investigate Bombing of Somali Village
    Press release
    Dec 21, 2011
    The government of Kenya should investigate the death of as many as 11 civilians during a Kenyan air force raid on Hosingow village in Somalia on December 20, 2011. Both the Kenyan armed forces and the armed group al-Shabaab should take all feasible precautions to minimize civilian casualties during military operations.
  • US: End CIA Drone Attacks
    Press release
    Dec 19, 2011
    The US government should transfer Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) command of aerial drone strikes to the armed forces and clarify its legal rationale for targeted killings, Human Rights Watch said today in a letter to President Barack Obama and in a questions and answers document. A dramatic increase in the use of CIA drone strikes underscores the need for the US to demonstrate that the CIA adheres to international legal requirements for accountability, Human Rights Watch said.
  • Q & A: US Targeted Killings and International Law
    Q & A
    Dec 19, 2011
    This Q&A focuses on legal and policy issues related to targeted killings, primarily attacks using unmanned aerial vehicles, known as drones, conducted by the US Armed Forces and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Human Rights Watch raised many of the issues addressed here in a December 2010 letter to President Obama.
  • Letter to President Obama: Targeted Killings by the US Government
    Letter
    Dec 16, 2011
    The Obama administration has taken few steps to provide greater transparency and accountability in conducting targeted killings, intensifying concerns both in the US and abroad about the lawfulness of these attacks.