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Iran: Population Law Violates Women’s Rights

Denies Access to Essential Reproductive Health Care, Information

(Beirut) – Iran’s new population law further violates women’s rights to sexual and reproductive health and puts women’s health and lives at risk, Human Rights Watch said today. Iranian authorities should immediately repeal the provisions that restrict…
Iranian women walk down a street in the capital Tehran on February 7, 2018.
News

Iran: Account of Horrific Abuse of Prominent Lawyer

Mistreatment and Medical Neglect

(Beirut) – Horrific reported details of Iranian authorities’ mistreatment in detention of Payam Derafshan, a respected human rights lawyer, show the Iranian intelligence agencies’ central role in repressing human rights activism, Human Rights Watch…
Payam Derafshan
News

Turkey: Soldiers Beat, Push Afghan Asylum Seekers Back to Iran

Authorities Deny Afghans Right to Seek Asylum

(New York) – Turkish authorities are summarily pushing Afghan asylum seekers crossing into the country from Iran back to Iran, in violation of international law, Human Rights Watch said today. Six Afghans, five of whom were pushed back, told Human…
A Turkish soldier stands at the Turkish border with Iran
News

Leaked Videos Show Abuses Behind Bars in Iran’s Prisons

Authorities Should End Mistreatment of Prisoners, Allow Investigations

This week, apparently hacked videos of surveillance cameras in Iran’s Evin prison, in the capital Tehran, have confirmed many of the patterns of abusive treatment and violations of due process human rights groups have documented for decades. These…
In this undated frame grab taken from video shared with The Associated Press by a self-identified hacker group called "The Justice of Ali," a guard hits a prisoner, at Evin prison in Tehran, Iran. 
News

Iran: Government Mismanagement Compounds Covid-19 Crisis

Vaccine Prohibitions, Poor Transparency Undermining Response

(Beirut) – Iranian authorities’ prohibition on procuring US- and UK-produced vaccines, lack of transparency, and mismanagement are exacerbating the already dire impact of the Covid-19 pandemic in Iran, Human Rights Watch said today. Iran is…
An Iranian man wearing a protective face mask looks on as people line-up to receive China's Sinopharm vaccine in central Tehran on July 19, 2021. 
News

Sweden: Iran War Crimes Trial Opens

Universal Jurisdiction Provides Opening for Justice for Long-Ignored Crimes

(Stockholm) – The opening of a landmark trial in Sweden on August 10, 2021 of an Iranian citizen accused of participating in the mass execution of political prisoners is an important moment for victims long denied recognition and justice. On July…
A human rights exhibition on Iran during the international campaign to demand justice for the victims of the 1988 massacre, held near the French National Assembly in Paris, November 14, 2017.
News

Social Media Harassment of Iran Researchers, Activists

Over the past few years, Human Rights Watch has seen numerous governments wage disinformation wars to further their agendas. Journalists and human rights activists, including Human Rights Watch staff, face online harassment campaigns, including by state-…
News

Iran: Deadly Repression of Khuzestan Protests

Hundreds Arrested; At Least 9 Deaths, Including a Child

(Beirut) – The rising death toll and mass arrests raise grave concerns about the Iranian authorities’ response to recent protests in Khuzestan and other provinces, Human Rights Watch said today. The authorities should immediately and…
Map of Iran with Khuzestan Province Highlighted
News

Iran: Deadly Response to Water Protests

3 Protesters Reported Killed in Southwestern Khuzestan Province

(Beirut) – Iranian authorities appear to have used excessive force against demonstrators in southwestern Iran protesting lack of access to water, Human Rights Watch said today. The authorities should transparently investigate the reported deaths of at…
Map of Iran with Khuzestan Province Highlighted
News

Iran: Alleged Plot to Kidnap Prominent Dissident in US

Federal Court Indicts 4 Iranians for Targeting Journalist Masih Alinejad

(New York) – The United States Justice Department’s indictment of four Iranian nationals allegedly plotting to kidnap an Iranian dissident journalist living in New York City heightens concerns about Iranian efforts to target Iranian activists abroad,…
Journalist and author Masih Alinejad speaks at a conference in New York City, on October 16, 2018.
News

Iran: Overseer of Mass Executions Elected President

Further Erosion of Political Rights, Accountability

(Beirut) – The victory of Ebrahim Raeesi, Iran’s judiciary chief, on June 19, 2021, in a presidential election that was neither free nor fair raises serious concerns about human rights and accountability in the country, Human Rights Watch said today…
Ebrahim Raeesi, a candidate in the 2017 presidential elections, addresses his supporters during a campaign rally at Imam Khomeini Mosque in the capital, Tehran, on May 16, 2017.
News

Submission on the Challenges and Threats Facing Climate Defenders

To the UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association

Human Rights Watch welcomes the opportunity to provide input on the challenges and risks facing climate defenders for the upcoming report by the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association. While recognizing that…
Activists from mining communities protesting at the Pietermaritzburg High Court on August 24, 2018, KwaZulu-Natal © 2018 Rob Symons
News

Iran: Ukraine Airline Victims’ Families Harassed, Abused

A Torture Case, No Transparency in Investigation of 2020 Downed Airliner

(Beirut) – Iranian authorities have engaged in a campaign of harassment and abuse against families of people killed in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard’s downing of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 in January 2020, Human Right Watch said today…
People hold placards with images of the victims of Ukraine International Airlines flight 752, which Iran's Revolutionary Guards shot down near Tehran, marking its first anniversary, in Toronto, Canada, January 8, 2021.
News

Middle East/North Africa: End Violent Punishment of Children

Human Rights Watch Introduces Country Index Based on Laws, Policies

(Beirut) – Governments in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) should outlaw the violent discipline of children, Human Rights Watch said today, introducing an index categorizing countries in the region based on their laws and policies. The MENA…
2020 Dadu Shin for Human Rights Watch
News

UN Elections Shouldn’t Disparage Human Rights

Iran, Pakistan, Egypt, China, Myanmar Win Women’s Rights Posts

When the United Nations General Assembly held its annual election for seats on the Human Rights Council last October, five countries in the Asia regional group vied for four open seats, including two of the world’s most notorious rights abusers, Saudi…
U.N. headquarters Saturday, Sept. 28, 2019. (AP Photo/Jeenah Moon)
News

Iran: Overturn Shutdown of Charity

UN Should Press Government to Reverse Decision

(Beirut) – The Iranian government should overturn a court ruling to dissolve one of the country’s largest nongovernmental groups that works to alleviate poverty, 15 human rights and civil society organizations, including Human Rights Watch, said today…
أعضاء في "جمعية الإمام علي" يحملون لافتة عليها شعار الجمعية واسمها.