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UN: Support Impartial Justice for War Crimes in Ukraine

Global Commitment to Accountability Should Be Model for Other Crises

(New York) – United Nations Security Council members should use an informal meeting on accountability for serious crimes in Ukraine to highlight the importance of impartial justice and coordination of a wide range of international accountability…
Women watch and embrace each other as bodies are exhumed from a mass grave by the authorities
News

Israel: Release Long Detained Gaza Aid Worker

6 Years After Arrest, Mohammad al-Halabi Has Not Been Convicted of a Crime

(Jerusalem) – Israeli authorities should immediately release Mohammad al-Halabi, a humanitarian worker from Gaza detained for nearly six years both before and during his trial, Human Rights Watch said today. The Israeli Supreme Court on February 17,…
Palestinian demonstrators hold posters of Mohammad al-Halabi
News

Germany Tries Crimes Against Humanity Committed in Gambia

Universal Jurisdiction Advances Justice for Victims

(Berlin) – The opening of the first German trial for serious crimes committed in Gambia is a major step for justice, Human Rights Watch, the International Commission of Jurists, Reporters Without Borders, and TRIAL International said today. The groups…
Members of the Gambian paramilitary group known as the Junglers. The Junglers have been implicated in serious human rights violations including torture, enforced disappearances, and killings.
News

Egypt: Release Autopsy Report, Investigate Suspicious Death

Economist Died in Custody After Enforced Disappearance

(Beirut) – Egyptian authorities should urgently release the autopsy report and investigate the suspicious death of economist Ayman Hadhoud, Human Rights Watch said today. Hadhoud was forcibly disappeared on February 5 or 6, 2022, and died in the…
Ayman Hadhoud
News

Central African Republic: War Crimes Court’s First Trial

Offers Potential Justice Model for Other Countries

(Nairobi) – The opening of the first trial at the Central African Republic’s Special Criminal Court (SCC) on April 19, 2022 represents significant progress in the difficult effort to see justice for grave crimes committed in the country, Human Rights…
The SCC courtroom in Bangui, where the first trial for serious international crimes committed since 2003, is set to begin on April 19. 
News

China: Treatment for Non-Covid Illnesses Denied

Ensure Access to Medical Care; Stop Child-Parent Separation; Permit Free Speech

(New York, April 6, 2022) – The Chinese government should respect the right to health and other basic rights in its response to the Covid-19 surge in the country, Human Rights Watch said today. Authorities in Shanghai have imposed draconian…
People in PPE load groceries off a truck before distributing them to locals under the Covid-19 lockdown in Shanghai, China, April 5, 2022.
News

Canada: Jailing Immigration Detainees Infringes on Rights

New #WelcomeToCanada Campaign Actions in British Columbia, Quebec, and Nova Scotia

(Ottawa) – Canada’s practice of incarcerating immigration detainees in provincial jails is inconsistent with international human rights standards, and jail conditions potentially breach federal-provincial immigration detention contracts, Human Rights…
Red and black illustration of people in detention
News

With Pandemic, Mental Health Services Even More Critical

At Summit, Governments Should Commit to Scale Up Community Services

(Paris) – Governments and donors should take concrete steps to develop rights-respecting and community-based mental health services, Human Rights Watch said today in a letter to governments in advance of the third Global Mental Health Summit. The…
A man sitting on the floor in a dilapidated room, with his ankles locked by a metal bar.
News

Chad’s Ex-Dictator Convicted of Atrocities

In landmark case, Hissène Habré found guilty of rape, war crimes, torture and crimes against humanity

(Dakar) – The conviction of Hissène Habré, the former president of Chad, for serious international crimes, is a vindication of the decades-long campaign waged by his victims, Human Rights Watch said today. Habré was convicted of torture, war crimes and…
Victims turned victors
News

Indonesia: Treating Mental Health With Shackles

People With Psychosocial Disabilities Face Restraints, Abuse

(Jakarta) - People with psychosocial disabilities in Indonesia are often shackled or forced into institutions where they face abuse, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. The 74-page report, “Living in Hell:…
2016 Indonesia Cover Photo
News

Senegal: Trial of Chad Ex-Dictator Begins

Hissène Habré Accused of Crimes Against Humanity, War Crimes, Torture

(Dakar, July 17, 2015) – The trial of Chad’s former dictator Hissène Habré is a victory for the victims of his government. The trial began in Senegal on July 20, 2015, almost 25 years after he was overthrown.    …
Clement Abaifouta, Souleymane Guengueng and Abdourahmane Guèye, stand outside of the courthouse where the trial of Hissène Habré will be held, on July 13, 2015 in Dakar, Senegal. The trial is set to begin on July 20, 2015. © 2015 Human Rights Watch
News

Central African Republic: People With Disabilities Left Behind

Aid Agencies Should Include Them in Planning; Meet Basic Needs

(Nairobi) – People with disabilities in the Central African Republic were often left behind and struggled to flee to safety when their communities came under the brutal attacks by armed groups beginning in 2013, Human Rights Watch said today. When they…
News

Syria: One Year On, No Justice for Chemical Attacks Victims

Hundreds Died in Deadliest Such Event in 25 Years

(New York) – Justice remains elusive for the victims of the chemical weapons attacks on Ghouta, near Damascus, which killed hundreds of people, Human Rights Watch said today, on the anniversary of the August 21, 2013 attacks. The attacks were the most…
News

Health Workers, Patients Under Attack

Expand Monitoring, Strengthen Protections

(Geneva) – Hundreds of attacks on health workers have occurred in dozens of countries around the world since 2012, Human Rights Watch and the Safeguarding Health in Conflict Coalition said in a joint report released today. The report, released in advance…
News

Morocco/Western Sahara: Dubious Confessions, Tainted Trials

No Fair Trials Until Courts Reject Statements Obtained by Torture, Abuse

(Rabat) –Morocco’s courts are convicting defendants based on confessions they claim were obtained through torture or falsified by police, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. The country’s judicial reform agenda needs to include stronger…
News

Sudan: Satellite Images Confirm Villages Destroyed

ICC Suspect Involved In Attacks Remains At-Large

(Nairobi) – Satellite images confirm the wholesale destruction of villages in Central Darfur in an attack in April 2013 by a militia leader sought by the International Criminal Court, Human Rights Watch said today. The images show the town of Abu…
News

Syria: Agencies Should Send Aid Where Most Needed

Opposition Areas Lack Food, Medical Assistance

 (New York) – Insufficient levels of humanitarian assistance are reaching opposition-controlled areas in northern Syria, despite their proximity to the Turkish border and dire medical, food, and other humanitarian needs. Human Rights Watch visited Raqqa…
News

DR Congo: Victims, Activists Respond to Warlord’s Surrender

(Goma) – Congolese human rights activists and victims of abuses allegedly carried out by Bosco Ntaganda’s troops have expressed support and relief at the rebel leader’s transfer to the International Criminal Court in new video clips released by Human…
News

Senegal: Proceedings Against Hissène Habré Draw Near

National Assembly Passes Laws for “Extraordinary African Chambers”

(Brussels) – The adoption by the Senegalese National Assembly on December 19, 2012,of laws establishing special chambers within the existing Senegalese court structure heralds the start of criminal proceedings against the former president of Chad, Hissène…
News

Ghana: People With Mental Disabilities Face Serious Abuse

Take Steps to Improve Plight of Mentally Disabled

People with mental disabilities suffer severe abuses in psychiatric institutions and spiritual healing centers in Ghana, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. The Ghanaian government has done little to combat such abuse or to ensure that…

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