• US: Bipartisan Study Shows Need to Investigate Torture
    Apr 16, 2013
    A bipartisan study finding “indisputable” evidence of torture for which the highest United States officials bear responsibility should spur the US government to thoroughly investigate detainee abuse since September 11, 2001, and provide redress to victims.
    Press release
  • US: NY Trial Right for Bin Laden In-Law
    Mar 8, 2013
    The Obama administration’s decision to try an alleged al Qaeda figure in federal court rather than before a military commission at Guantanamo best serves the interests of justice. Sulaiman Abu Ghaith, a son-in-law of Osama bin Laden who had been an al Qaeda spokesman, was indicted on a criminal charge of conspiracy to kill United States citizens. He appeared in US District Court in Manhattan on March 8, 2013, and pleaded not guilty.
    Press release
  • US: Injustices Filling the Prisons
    Jan 31, 2013

    The enormous prison population in the United States partly reflects harsh sentencing practices contrary to international law, Human Rights Watch said in the US chapter of its World Report 2013.

    Press release
  • US: Zero Dark Thirty and the Truth About Torture
    Jan 11, 2013
    The movie Zero Dark Thirty, which depicts the hunt for Osama bin Laden, wrongly suggests that torture was an ugly but useful tactic in the fight against terrorism.
    Press release
  • US: Defense Bill Signing Backtracks on Guantanamo
    Jan 3, 2013
    US President Barack Obama’s refusal to veto a defense spending bill restricting detainee transfers from Guantanamo undercuts his pledge to close the prison. Obama signed the 2013 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), even though his advisers had said they would recommend a veto if it contained detainee transfer restrictions.
    Press release
  • Canada: Rehabilitate and Reintegrate Ex-Child Soldier
    Sep 29, 2012
    The government of Canada should rehabilitate and reintegrate into society former child soldier Omar Khadr, and seek to remedy abuses he suffered during a decade in United States custody.
    Press release
  • US: Death at Guantanamo Underscores Need to Close Facility
    Sep 11, 2012
    The death of a detainee at Guantanamo Bay on September 8, 2012, underscores the need for the United States government to either charge detainees in civilian court or release them.
    Press release
  • US: Torture and Rendition to Gaddafi’s Libya
    Sep 5, 2012
    Press release
  • US: Make Guantanamo’s 10th Anniversary Its Last
    Jan 11, 2012
    US President Barack Obama’s signing of a bill permitting indefinite detention without trial mere days before the 10th anniversary of the first prisoners arriving at Guantanamo highlights the need for immediate, decisive action to close the detention facility.
    Press release
  • US: Refusal to Veto Detainee Bill A Historic Tragedy for Rights
    Dec 14, 2011
    US President Barack Obama’s apparent decision to not veto a defense spending bill that codifies indefinite detention without trial into US law and expands the military’s role in holding terrorism suspects does enormous damage to the rule of law both in the US and abroad.
    Press release