Below you’ll find breaking news as well as reports, updates on our campaigns, and victories.
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Press Release
Iran: Arrest of prominent human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh is an outrage
The arrest of Nasrin Sotoudeh, a prominent Iranian human rights lawyer, is an outrageous attack on a brave and prolific human rights defender, Amnesty International said today. Nasrin Sotoudeh was arrested at her home in Tehran this morning and transferred to the prosecutor’s office of Evin prison, according to her husband, Reza Khandan. In an interview earlier today with Manoto News, a Persian language news channel broadcast from outside Iran, Reza Khandan also revealed that Nasrin Sotoudeh was told she was being arrested to serve a five-year prison sentence. However, neither he nor Nasrin Sotoudeh knew anything about this sentence.…
June 13, 2018
Report
Protest prohibited: Use of force and arbitrary detentions to suppress dissent in Honduras
Honduran authorities have continued to violate the human rights of people arrested during last year’s post-election protests by denying their right to due process and holding them in inhumane conditions, said Amnesty International in a report released today.
June 13, 2018
Press Release
Yemen: Attack on Hodeidah threatens civilian lives and lifesaving humanitarian aid
Responding to the news that Yemeni forces backed by a Saudi Arabia-led coalition have launched an offensive on the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah, Amnesty International’s Middle East Research Director Lynn Malouf said: “The assault on Hodeidah could have a devastating impact for hundreds of thousands of civilians – not just in the city but throughout Yemen. “With an estimated 600,000 people living in and around Hodeidah, all sides to the conflict must take all feasible precautions to ensure that the civilian population is protected. “Equally vital is that the Saudi Arabia-led coalition and Huthi forces ensure the flow of…
June 13, 2018
Press Release
Brazil: Three months after Marielle Franco’s death, prosecutors are failing to deliver justice
Brazilian prosecutors must enlist specialist investigators to solve the killing of human rights defender Marielle Franco and her driver, Anderson Gomes, if there is to be any hope of bringing those responsible to justice, Amnesty International said today. “Three months have gone by since Marielle was brutally taken from us, and we are no closer to knowing who killed her and why. This lack of justice is unbearable for her loved ones, those who worked beside her and other human rights defenders who are looking over their shoulder in fear,” said Jurema Werneck, executive director of Amnesty International Brazil. “The…
June 12, 2018
Press Release
Amnesty International USA Reaction to U.S.-North Korea Summit
According to President Trump, human rights were discussed during the summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Francisco Bencosme, advocacy manager for Asia Pacific at Amnesty International USA, issued the following statement:
June 12, 2018
Press Release
Italy/Malta: Forcing Aquarius to Valencia undermines search and rescue system and sets deadly precedent
As the SOS Mediterranee rescue ship, MV Aquarius, heads to the Spanish port of Valencia, Elisa De Pieri, Amnesty International’s Italy Researcher said: “By closing their ports the Italian and Maltese governments are trampling the principle of rescue at sea and undermining the entire search and rescue system. If allowed to go unchallenged, it will discourage and compromise the lifesaving work of NGO’s leaving thousands of migrants and refugees adrift in the Mediterranean. “Whilst the offer by the Spanish government to welcome the Aquarius is a moving example of solidarity, it also highlights the calculated callousness of the Italian and…
June 12, 2018
Report
Cameroon: Anglophone regions gripped by deadly violence
Armed separatists in Cameroon’s Anglophone regions have stabbed to death and shot military personnel, burned down schools and attacked teachers, while security forces have tortured people, fired on crowds and destroyed villages, in a spiral of violence that keeps getting more deadly, Amnesty International said today. In a new report on Cameroon’s Anglophone crisis, ‘A turn for the worse: Violence and human rights violations in Anglophone Cameroon’, which is based on in-depth interviews with over 150 victims and eye-witnesses, and material evidence including satellite images, the organization documents how general population is paying the highest price as violence escalates in the North West…
June 11, 2018
Press Release
Latest Assault on Asylum Seekers Targets Survivors of Domestic and Gang Violence
Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced a major decision today that will impact people seeking safety. It will have far-ranging implications, devastating the ability of people fleeing persecution inflicted by non-governmental actors to pursue their cases in the United States. This includes people fleeing domestic or gang violence.
June 11, 2018
Press Release
Libya: Protect Civilians under siege in Derna
Amid reports of an escalating humanitarian crisis in the besieged Libyan city of Derna, Amnesty International is calling on the leader of the Libyan National Army (LNA), General Khalifa Haftar, and all parties involved in the fighting to urgently open humanitarian corridors to give impartial assistance and save the lives of civilians still trapped in the city as the army advances. Derna residents are bracing themselves for a bloody street battle as the LNA advances its control over the city. Residents say they fear trying to flee from the city because the LNA is known to profile, arbitrarily detain and…
June 11, 2018
Press Release
Italy/Malta: Stranded refugees and migrants must be immediately allowed to dock
As the SOS Mediterranee rescue ship, MV Aquarius remains stranded between Malta and Sicily with 629 people aboard including 123 unaccompanied minors, 11 children and seven pregnant women, Elisa De Pieri, Amnesty International’s Italy Researcher said: “By closing their ports, Italy and Malta have not only turned their backs on more than 600 desperate and vulnerable people but also on their obligations under international law. “The men, women and children aboard the Aquarius have risked their lives on perilous seas to escape horrific abuses in Libya only to find themselves caught in an unconscionable political stand-off between two European states.…
June 11, 2018
Press Release
North Korea/US Summit: Horrific human rights situation must not be ignored at historic meeting
The near total denial of human rights in North Korea should not be ignored at next Tuesday’s historic meeting between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Chairman Kim Jong-un, Amnesty International said.
June 8, 2018
Press Release
Russia: The bravest World Cup team you’ve never heard of
As Russia prepares for the opening game of the FIFA World Cup 2018, Amnesty International is shining a spotlight on 11 Russian human rights champions who routinely put their lives on the line to defend human rights in Russia. A new campaign, Team Brave, will profile a human rights defender from each of the 11 regions hosting World Cup matches to raise awareness of their important work, and Amnesty International supporters from around the world will send messages of solidarity to show these brave individuals that they are not alone. “As World Cup excitement builds, we want to highlight the…
June 8, 2018