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What Next for Australian ISIS Suspects?

Government Should Pursue Full Investigations, Fair Trials

The Australian government is taking an important step by helping eight Australian children of suspects of the Islamic State (also known as ISIS) return home from northeast Syria. The children were held for months without charge under horrific…
Rusafa Central Criminal Court in Baghdad.
News

A Call for Justice in Africa’s Great Lakes Region

Nairobi Conference Commits to Greater Efforts to Fight Impunity, Defend Rights

Last week, the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region met in Nairobi, Kenya, to discuss “combating impunity and upholding human rights as key contributors to peace and security.” Representatives from the organization’s 12…
Jean Baptiste Nguondija, a resident of Ngbada, Central African Republic, by the grave of his 10 year-old daughter Nathana Poura. Nguondija has lost 5 children since the conflict began in 2013.
News

Remembering Alison Des Forges, 10 Years Later

Rights Champion Wrote Definitive Account of Rwandan Genocide

Ten years ago today, our beloved colleague Alison Des Forges died in the crash of Flight 3407 traveling from Newark to her home in Buffalo. Alison had recently been in Uganda to meet with her research team that, to my great fortune,…
News

Saving European Democracy Starts at Home

If French President Emmanuel Macron is serious about pushing back against xenophobic populists, he needs to revamp his own legislative agenda

Among media analysts and academics, there is a widespread belief that one man, President Emmanuel Macron of France, can stem the tide of radical right populism in Europe. Macron burnished his credentials as the continent’s leading defender of…
French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech before a debate on the Future of Europe at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, April 17, 2018.
News

China: France’s Macron Should Spotlight Rights

On Visit, Urge Liu Xia’s Release, Raise Internet Censorship

(Paris) – French President Emmanuel Macron should honor his pledge and call publicly for human rights improvements in meetings with President Xi Jinping and other Chinese leaders, Human Rights Watch said today in a letter to President Macron…
201801asia_china_macron French President Emmanuel Macron delivers his New Year wishes to the members of the press corps at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, January 3, 2018.
News

ICC: New Burundi Investigation

2-Year Bloody Crackdown on Political Opposition

(Nairobi, November 9, 2017) – The International Criminal Court (ICC) judges’ decision announced today to open an investigation in Burundi gives victims hope that those responsible for grave crimes over the past two years could be held to account, Human…
Residents outside their houses in Nyakabiga, in the Burundian capital Bujumbura, look at the body of a man shot dead on December 11, 2015.
News

AU's 'ICC Withdrawal Strategy' Less than Meets the Eye

Opposition to Withdrawal by States

The African Union made headlines Tuesday for purportedly agreeing to mass withdrawal from the International Criminal Court. The reality is more complex. The decision by AU member states welcomes the announced withdrawals by South Africa,…
A general view shows the headquarters of the African Union (AU) building in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa, January 29, 2017.
News

Defend the Integrity of the Rome Statute and a Court Worth Having

The withdrawals by South Africa and Burundi from the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) pose a real challenge to the evolving system of international justice centered on the ICC. Coming after escalating criticism…
A picture of the ICC logo on a glass wall.
News

Letter to Presidents of African States Parties to the ICC

November 14, 2016 To the Presidents of African States Parties to the International Criminal Court, We write to commend your government for its membership and support for the International Criminal Court, and to encourage your…
News

Africans Speak Out Against ICC Withdrawal

Governments Signal Continued Support for Court

The recent decisions by South Africa, Burundi, and Gambia to leave the International Criminal Court (ICC) are generating wide attention and speculation about a mass exodus from the court by African countries.  But think it’s clear where Africa stands on…
Stella Ndirangu of ICJ Kenya
News

Burundi: ICC Withdrawal Major Loss to Victims

Latest Move Shows Government’s Disregard for Victims

(Nairobi) – Burundi has taken a major step backward by officially withdrawing from the International Criminal Court, Human Rights Watch said today. Other African ICC members should distance themselves from Burundi’s withdrawal and affirm their support for…
Residents outside their houses in Nyakabiga, in the Burundian capital Bujumbura, look at the body of a man shot dead on December 11, 2015.
News

South Africa: ICC Move Betrays Victims

Members Should Reaffirm Support for International Court

(Johannesburg) – South Africa’s announced withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC) treaty represents an enormous blow to its commitment to justice for atrocity crimes, Human Rights Watch said today. ICC members…
The Permanent Premises of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands.
News

Steps Towards Justice For Syria

Seeking justice for the ongoing grave human rights abuses in Syria has proven largely elusive. Now the shield of impunity is beginning to crack. Several countries, including Sweden, Germany, and France are in the process of investigating some…
Syrian Man Carries Children After Barrel Bomb Attack
News

Q&A: First Cracks to Impunity in Syria, Iraq

Refugee Crisis and Universal Jurisdiction Cases in Europe

What’s the basis for European courts to try atrocities committed in Syria and Iraq? What is universal jurisdiction? Does universal jurisdiction mean that every country can investigate any grave international crime committed in Syria and Iraq? What…
Syrian Man Carries Children After Barrel Bomb Attack
News

War Crimes Prosecutions in Europe

Video, Q&A Highlight Cases Spurred by Syrian, Iraqi Refugees

(Brussels) – Human Rights Watch released a question-and-answer document and video on October 20, 2016 that highlight the groundbreaking investigations and prosecutions in European countries of people accused of kidnappings, ill-treatment, and torture in…
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Embracing Impunity in Burundi

Government Approves Withdrawal from International Criminal Court

The vote by Burundi’s National Assembly and Senate approving withdrawal from the International Criminal Court is the latest move by a government intent on shielding its poor human rights record from international scrutiny. …
On October 13, 2015, police shot dead Christophe Nkezabahizi, his wife, nephew, and his two teenage children in Bujumbura. No one has been held accountable for their deaths.
News

Syrian Refugees Help Nab Suspected War Criminals in Europe

Refugees Assist Investigations in France, Germany and Sweden

As Bashar al-Assad’s forces ramped up their bombing campaign on rebel-held territory over the past year, his government may not have realized that they were cracking its shield against accountability for crimes committed in the Syrian conflict since 2011…
Shelters burning in Iqdah displaced persons camp near the closed Turkish border north of Aleppo after ISIS took over the camp on April 14.

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