Human Rights

Iraq: ISIS Suspects’ Homes Confiscated

Lack Judicial Remedy to Reclaim Property, Seek Compensation

Iraqi security officers are denying immediate relatives of suspected Islamic State (also known as ISIS) members security clearance to reclaim homes being occupied or to seek compensation, Human Rights Watch said on Apr 19, 2018. Security forces have also destroyed or confiscated some property. Such acts, based only on family relationships to ISIS suspects rather than individual security determinations, are a form of collective punishment.

Syria: Justice Needed for 7 Years of Abuse

Investigative Team Briefs UN General Assembly

UN member states should fully fund and cooperate with a new UN team to gather and preserve evidence of serious crimes in Syria for future prosecutions, Human Rights Watch said. On April 18, 2018, the head of the new team, Catherine Marchi-Uhel, will brief the General Assembly for the first time.

Lebanon: Positive Step for Refugee Children

Legal Status Would Help Teens Enroll in School

A new regulation allowing some Syrian teenagers to get temporary legal status in Lebanon more easily is a positive and long-awaited step, Human Rights Watch said on Apr 17, 2018. Lebanese authorities should ensure that all children can maintain legal status, a key factor in fulfilling their right to an education.

France: Bill Could Undermine Asylum Seekers’ Rights

Amend Draft to Safeguard Access to Protection

A bill before the French Parliament on immigration and asylum could jeopardize access to protection and should be revised, Human Rights Watch said on Apr 16, 2018. The National Assembly will examine the bill in the week of April 16, 2018, and the Senate in May.

Protect indigenous people’s land rights and the whole world will benefit, UN forum declares

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Tadodaho Sid Hill, Chief of the Onondaga Nation, delivers the ceremonial welcome at the opening of the seventeenth session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.

South Korea: Press Human Rights in Discussions with North Korea

Over 200 NGOs Call for Rights to Be Prioritized

South Korea should press for human rights issues to be included in all discussions with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), including in the agenda of the summit between South Korean president Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un scheduled for April 27, 2018, Human Rights Watch and 39 other leading global nongovernmental organizations said in a letter to Moon on Apr 10, 2018.

UN report documents horrors faced by thousands held in arbitrary detention in Libya

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In Libya, dozens of migrants sleep alongside one another in a cramped cell in Tripoli's Tariq al-Sikka detention facility.

Ricardo Montaner and Human Rights Watch Campaign for Venezuela

Governments Should Press Maduro to Tackle Crisis

Latin Americans and their governments should speak out and urge President Nicolás Maduro’s government to recognize and tackle the devastating human rights and humanitarian crisis in Venezuela, Latin music star Ricardo Montaner and Human Rights Watch said in a campaign launched on Apr 09, 2018.

Egypt: Al-Sisi Should End Rights Abuses

Allies Should Push for Reform in Second Term

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi should prioritize reforms to end serious human rights violations during his second term, Human Rights Watch said on Apr 10, 2018.

Overlap of state and ruling party resources undermines contestants’ ability to compete on equal basis in Hungary elections, OSCE/ODIHR observers say

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A voter in Budapest receiving his ballot for Hungary's parliamentary elections, 8 April 2018.