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Breaking news and updates on human rights in the U.S. and around the world

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A protest in Tunisia. People hold large signs showing faces on a multicolored banner, under a row of small red and white Tunisian flags.
(Hasan Mrad/DeFodi Images News via Getty Images)

Press Release

Tunisia: Mass Convictions in ‘Conspiracy Case 2’ Deepen Rule of Law Crisis

The mass conviction of opposition figures in Tunisia’s “Conspiracy Case 2” is a new example of authorities’ ongoing restrictions on civic…

July 28, 2025

A masked person in an all black uniform stands guard on a city street wielding an AK rifle. A man in a hooded jacket walks nearby. There are parked cars and leafless trees. It is cloudy.
(Omar Haj Kadour/AFP via Getty Images)

Press Release

Syria: Authorities Must Investigate Abductions of Alawite Women and Girls 

The Syrian government must promptly, thoroughly and impartially investigate cases of abducted and kidnapped Alawite women and girls.

July 28, 2025

Press Release

Eswatini: Amnesty International Designates Arbitrarily Detained MPs as Prisoners of Conscience

Their continued arbitrary detention shows Eswatini’s deepening climate of repression and misuse of the justice system to punish those who…

July 25, 2025

A tropical island lined with beaches and filled with green palm trees surrounded by clear turquoise waters under a blue sky with white clouds.

Press Release

Global: International Court of Justice’s Landmark Opinion Bolsters Fight for Climate Justice and Accountability

The ICJ made clear that full enjoyment of human rights cannot be ensured without protection of the climate system and…

July 23, 2025

The photo shows Emine Ocak, mother of Hasan Ocak, who was disappeared in 1995 at age 23. The longstanding peaceful vigil known as the ‘Saturday Mothers’ vigil first started as a response to the hundreds of reported cases of enforced disappearances during the 1980s and 1990s by relatives of people who were forcibly disappeared and to protest against the prevalent impunity for grave human rights violations of the day. The exact circumstances of the disappearances in the vast majority of cases are still unknown, including the fate and whereabouts of hundreds of victims, and those responsible have not been brought to justice. Saturday Mothers have held 699 peaceful gatherings since May 1995. During this time, many participants have faced intimidation, harassment, excessive use of force, arbitrary detention and unjust prosecution. In 1999, as a result, the organizers decided to stop holding the weekly vigils, which resumed in 2009 to continue with their demand of truth, justice and reparations for all cases of enforced disappearances. On 25 August, police in Istanbul used unnecessary and excessive force, including tear gas, plastic bullets and water cannons, to disperse participants of a weekly vigil- known as the ‘Saturday Mothers vigil’- held for victims of enforced disappearance. The longstanding protest was marking its 700th week since it was first held in 1995. Scores of participants, including elderly relatives of people who were forcibly disappeared, were ill-treated and 47 people were detained before being released from police custody later that day.
(Emre Orman)

Press Release

Türkiye: The Struggle for Truth, Accountability and Justice Loses One of its Most Prominent Advocates - Emine Ocak

Emine Ocak, whose son was tortured to death in custody, unwavering lydemanded Turkish authorities investigate the forcible disappearances of hundreds…

July 23, 2025

Crowds form as Palestinians, including children, line up in Gaza City to receive food distributed by a charity amid ongoing Israeli blockade and attacks on Gaza
(Ali Jadallah/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Press Release

As Mass Starvation Spreads Across Gaza, Our Colleagues and Those We Serve Are Wasting Away

Amnesty International joins 100 groups demanding immediate, decisive action to ensure humanitarian access and save lives in Gaza.

July 23, 2025

(AFP via Getty Images)

Press Release

Iran: Deliberate Israeli Attack on Tehran’s Evin Prison Must Be Investigated as a War Crime

The Israeli military’s deliberate air strikes on Evin prison constitute a serious violation of international humanitarian law and must be…

July 22, 2025

(El Salvador Press Presidency Office/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Press Release

Amnesty International Statement on U.S.-Venezuela Prisoner Swap

None of these people should have been detained, yet they became entangled in President Trump’s anti-immigrant agenda and were used as…

July 19, 2025

(Amnesty International, 2025)

Press Release

Cambodia: Scamming Crisis Survivors Must Be Protected Amid Police Crackdown

A coordinated government response to Cambodia’s scamming crisis is long overdue. It is vital that authorities respect the human rights…

July 18, 2025

(JOHN WESSELS/AFP via Getty Images)

Press Release

Angola: Authorities Must Respect and Ensure the Right to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly

Police must refrain from violating the right to freedom of peaceful assembly, including through the use of unnecessary and excessive…

July 17, 2025

A bus and a group of people seen across a street from between two tall leather boots.
(AFP/Getty)

Press Release

Russia: Proposed Amendments to Counter-Extremism Laws Escalate Assault on Dissent

The Russian authorities are disguising their relentless persecution of dissent as countering ‘extremism.'

July 16, 2025

(Yuri CORTEZ / AFP)

Press Release

Venezuela: Enforced Disappearances Amount to Crimes Against Humanity

The scale and gravity of these crimes must stir the conscience of the world, and propel international justice into action.

July 15, 2025