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Press Release

The occupied Gaza Strip will likely plunge into another total communications blackout on Thursday if appropriate fuel supplies are not immediately delivered, which will worsen an already catastrophic humanitarian situation, Amnesty International said today.   Today, Paltel group and Jawwal, two of the largest telecommunication companies in the area, issued a joint statement to report that their main data servers and switches were gradually shutting down due to fuel depletion. The blackout faced by Paltel and Jawwal would not be recoverable until fuel has been restored––as the two largest operators in the area, the consequences of this would be devastating.  Israel…

November 15, 2023

Press Release

The Government of Pakistan must immediately halt the continued detentions, deportations and widespread harassment of Afghan refugees, said Amnesty International today. “Thousands of Afghan refugees are being used as political pawns to be returned to Taliban-ruled Afghanistan where their life and physical integrity could be at risk amidst an intensified crackdown on human rights and an ongoing humanitarian catastrophe. No one should be subjected to mass forced deportations, and Pakistan would do well to remember its international legal obligations, including the principle of non-refoulement,” said Livia Saccardi, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for Campaigns for South Asia. “If the Pakistani…

November 13, 2023

Press Release

Responding to today’s indictment of two prominent human rights defenders, Fatia Maulidiyanti and Haris Azhar, Amnesty International Indonesia’s Executive Director Usman Hamid said: “This disgraceful indictment will have a destructive effect on the work of human rights defenders in Indonesia. “Instead of protecting the right to freedom of expression, the Indonesian authorities are obliterating civic space. These alarming indictments illustrate the increasing oppression faced by activists who express dissenting opinions. “We urge the Indonesian authorities to immediately release Fatia Maulidiyanti and Haris Azhar. The right to freedom of expression must be respected and guaranteed.” Background Today, the public prosecutor indicted…

November 13, 2023

Press Release

An agreement at the COP28 summit to end the production and use of fossil fuels is vital to prevent a global climate catastrophe and stop an unprecedented human rights crisis which threatens the rights of billions of people from escalating, Amnesty International said today. In a briefing titled, Fatal Fuels, Amnesty International calls for parties at COP28, which starts later this month, to agree to a full, fair, fast and funded phase out of fossil fuels and a human-rights compliant transition to renewable power which facilitates access to energy for all. “For decades the fossil fuel industry has spread disinformation…

November 12, 2023

Press Release

More than a million signatures from people around the world have been gathered for an Amnesty International petition demanding an immediate ceasefire to end the unparalleled escalation of hostilities in Gaza and Israel since 7 October 2023. In response, Erika Guevara-Rosas, Senior Director of Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns at Amnesty International, said: “The world is watching in horror as more and more civilians lose their lives each day amid Israel’s relentless bombardment and ground operations, and the unfolding of an unprecedented, man-made humanitarian catastrophe in the occupied Gaza Strip. More than 10,800 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza including at least…

November 10, 2023

Press Release

In response to recent rising levels of hate speech, discrimination and violence across the US, Amnesty International USA’s Executive Director, Paul O’Brien, made this statement

November 8, 2023

Press Release

Israeli authorities have dramatically increased their use of administrative detention, a form of arbitrary detention, of Palestinians across the occupied West Bank; extended emergency measures that facilitate inhuman and degrading treatment of prisoners; and failed to investigate incidents of torture and death in custody over the past four weeks, Amnesty International said today. Since 7 October, Israeli forces have detained more than 2,200 Palestinian men and women, according to the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club. According to Israeli human rights organization HaMoked between 1 October and 1 November, the total number of Palestinians held in administrative detention, without charge or trial, rose from 1,319 to 2,070. Testimony from released detainees and human rights lawyers, as well as video footage and images illustrate…

November 8, 2023

Press Release

“Ohio has become the latest state to protect abortion rights at the polls. Abortion is a human right and basic healthcare—and protecting abortion access remains popular with voters across the country. Despite this latest victory for abortion rights at the polls, politicians at the state and federal level, including in Ohio, continue relentless assaults on abortion and other reproductive healthcare and rights. We continue to call on legislators to work to protect the right to abortion and to ensure full access to abortion for all instead of seeking to control the human rights and bodies of their constituents. No one should ever…

November 7, 2023

Press Release

Amnesty International reiterates its call for the immediate and unconditional release of all civilian hostages, some of them children, who have been held in the occupied Gaza Strip for a month after being abducted by Hamas and other armed groups on October 7.

November 7, 2023

Press Release

Financial Action Task Force Review Should Document Crackdown on Dissent The global terrorism financing and money laundering watchdog, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), should call on the Indian government to stop prosecuting, intimidating and harassing human rights defenders, activists and non-profit organisations in the country on the pretext of countering terrorist financing, Amnesty International, Charity and Security Network and Human Rights Watch said today.  FATF members are to start their fourth periodic review of India’s record on tackling illicit funding on November 6, 2023. Indian authorities have exploited FATF’s recommendations which aim to prevent terrorist financing as part of…

November 3, 2023

Press Release

With negotiations on how to finance and manage an international Loss and Damage Fund on the brink of failure before the COP28 climate summit begins later this month, Amnesty International’s Climate Advisor Ann Harrison said: “A functioning and effective Loss and Damage Fund which can help communities shattered by catastrophic climate events to recover is potentially a matter of life or death for people facing the severe consequences of global warming, such as droughts, floods, rising sea levels and loss of livelihoods. “It is shameful and deeply concerning that since parties agreed to establish the Loss and Damage Fund almost…

November 1, 2023

Press Release

The Israeli army fired artillery shells containing white phosphorus, an incendiary weapon, in military operations along Lebanon’s southern border between 10 and 16 October 2023, Amnesty International said today. One attack on the town of Dhayra on 16 October must be investigated as a war crime because it was an indiscriminate attack that injured at least nine civilians and damaged civilian objects, and was therefore unlawful, said the organization. Cross-border hostilities in southern Lebanon have escalated significantly since 7 October. Israeli shelling in Lebanon has killed at least four civilians and 48 Hezbollah members so far. Hezbollah and other armed…

October 31, 2023