Human Rights Watch Daily Brief, 3 December 2014

Iran will hold Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian behind bars for another two months. Rezaian, a citizen of both Iran and the United States, was “detained for some questions” in July but has not been formally charged with any crimes. Representatives of countries donating to Afghanistan, who are meeting in London today and tomorrow, should pressure Afghanistan’s new government to prevent a further deterioration in its rights situation. Despite important improvements in rights, crucial problems persist.
An Egyptian court has issued death sentences to 188 defendants – the third such mass sentencing this year.The defendants were convicted for taking part in a 2013 attack on a police station, killing eleven police officers and two civilians.
In India, women and girls with disabilities are forced into mental hospitals and institutions where they endure overcrowded and unsanitary conditions, are at risk of sexual violence, and often undergo forced treatment – even electroshock therapy.
Over 100 countries signed a treaty banning landmines on December 3, 1997. Seventeen years later, there are hopeful signs of global mine reduction, but there is dwindling interest in eradicating their use permanently.