Reports

Pushbacks and Pullbacks of Syrian Refugees from Cyprus and Lebanon

The 90-page report, “‘I Can’t Go Home, Stay Here, or Leave’: Pushbacks and Pullbacks of Syrian Refugees from Cyprus and Lebanon,” documents why Syrian refugees in Lebanon are desperate to leave and try to reach Europe; and how the Lebanese army has intercepted, pulled them back, and summarily expelled them to Syria. In tandem, the Cypriot Coast Guard and other Cypriot security forces have sent Syrians whose boats reached Cyprus back to Lebanon, without regard to their refugee status or risk of being expelled to Syria. Many of those sent back to Lebanon by Cyprus were immediately expelled to Syria by the Lebanese army.

Men on a military boat at sea

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  • December 2, 2009

    The Transfer of Immigrants to Remote Detention Centers in the United States

    This 88-page report presents new data analyzed for Human Rights Watch by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) of Syracuse University. The data show that 53 percent of the 1.4 million transfers have taken place since 2006, and most occur between state and local jails that contract with the agency, known as ICE, to provide detention bed space.
  • October 29, 2009

    Insufficient Protection for Unaccompanied Migrant Children at Roissy Charles de Gaulle Airport

    In this 60-page report, Human Rights Watch concludes that France's system of detaining and deporting unaccompanied migrant children who arrive in Paris by air puts them at serious risk.
  • September 21, 2009

    Italy's Forced Return of Boat Migrants and Asylum Seekers, Libya's Mistreatment of Migrants and Asylum Seekers

    This 92-page report examines the treatment of migrants, asylum seekers, and refugees in Libya through the eyes of those who have managed to leave and are now in Italy and Malta. It also documents Italy's practice of interdicting boats full of migrants on the high seas and pushing them back to Libya without the required screening.
  • June 19, 2009

    Repatriating the Displaced in the Context of Conflict in Eastern Chad

    This 47-page report documents abuses against people who have been returning to their villages from camps for displaced persons in southeastern Chad. The Chadian government should work to improve security in rural areas where many of the displaced are returning.
  • June 18, 2009

    Human Rights Abuses Affecting Migrants Living with HIV

    This 22-page report describes how discrimination and human rights abuses faced by migrant populations result in increased vulnerability to HIV infection and barriers to care and treatment.

  • April 16, 2009

    State Repression and Indefinite Conscription in Eritrea

    This 95-page report documents serious human rights violations by the Eritrean government, including arbitrary arrest, torture, appalling detention conditions, forced labor, and severe restrictions on freedom of movement, expression, and worship. It also analyzes the difficult situation faced by Eritreans who succeed in escaping to other countries such as Libya, Sudan, Egypt, and Italy.

  • March 30, 2009

    Kenya’s Forgotten Somali Refugee Crisis

    This 58-page report documents the extortion, detention, violence, and deportation at the hands of the Kenyan police faced by a record number of Somalis entering Kenya. The new refugees are joining over a quarter of a million fellow refugees struggling to survive in camps designed for one-third that number.
  • February 19, 2009

    Sri Lankan Army and LTTE Abuses against Civilians in the Vanni

    This 45-page report is based on a two-week fact-finding mission to northern Sri Lanka in February. The government has prohibited journalists and human rights monitors from going to the battle zone in the Vanni, making access to information difficult.
  • January 21, 2009

    Rights Abuses of Ethnic Khmer in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta

    This report documents ongoing violations of the rights of the Khmer Krom in southern Vietnam and also abuses in Cambodia against Khmer Krom who have fled there for refuge. Wary about possible Khmer Krom nationalist aspirations, Vietnam has suppressed peaceful expressions of dissent and banned Khmer Krom human rights publications.
  • December 23, 2008

    The Plight of Civilians in Sri Lanka’s Vanni Region

    This 49-page report documents the Sri Lankan government's responsibility for the plight of the 230,000 to 300,000 displaced persons trapped in the Vanni conflict zone. They face severe shortages of food and other essentials because of government restrictions on humanitarian assistance.
  • December 22, 2008

    Systematic Failure to Protect Unaccompanied Migrant Children in Greece

    Some 1,000 unaccompanied migrant children who have entered Greece in 2008 without parents or caregivers struggle to survive without any state assistance, Human Rights Watch said in a new report issued today.
  • December 19, 2008

    This 216-page report focuses on the present-day situation rather than on past abuses. Human Rights Watch documents how Morocco uses a combination of repressive laws, police violence, and unfair trials to punish Sahrawis who advocate peacefully in favor of independence or full self-determination for the disputed Western Sahara.

  • December 8, 2008

    War Crimes and the Devastation of Somalia

    The 104-page report, "So Much to Fear: War Crimes and the Devastation of Somalia," describes how the Somali Transitional Federal Government (TFG), the Ethiopian forces that intervened in Somalia to support it and insurgent forces have committed widespread and serious violations of the laws of war.
  • November 26, 2008

    Iraqis and Other Asylum Seekers and Migrants at the Greece/Turkey Entrance to the European Union

  • November 19, 2008

    The Challenge of Humanitarian Access in Yemen’s Forgotten War

    This 50-page report documents how the Yemeni authorities have severely restricted humanitarian access to its northernmost governorate, Sa’da, ravaged by four years of armed conflict. As of October 2008, up to 70,000 people in remote areas and towns remained outside the reach of aid agencies.