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Rohingya refugees from Myanmar's Rakhine state arrive near the Khanchon border crossing near the Bangaldeshi town of Teknaf on Septebmer 5, 2017. Nearly 125,000 mostly Rohingya refugees have entered Bangladesh since a fresh upsurge of violence in Myanmar on August 25, the United Nations said September 5, as fears grow of a humanitarian crisis in the overstretched camps. The UN said 123,600 had crossed the border in the past 11 days from Myanmar's violence-wracked Rakhine state. / AFP PHOTO / K M Asad (Photo credit should read K M ASAD/AFP/Getty Images)

Press Release

Official response to Rakhine and Rohingya crisis in Myanmar ‘unconscionable’

The statement by Myanmar’s leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s office, which claims that the government is defending all the people in Rakhine state “in the best possible way,” is unconscionable, Amnesty International said today.

September 6, 2017

Press Release

Boko Haram’s renewed campaign sparks sharp rise in civilian deaths

A major resurgence in Boko Haram attacks and suicide bombings in Cameroon and Nigeria has left at least 381 civilians dead in the five months since the start of April 2017, with casualties more than double the previous five months, Amnesty International said today.

September 5, 2017

Rohingya refugees from Myanmar's Rakhine state arrive near the Khanchon border crossing near the Bangaldeshi town of Teknaf on Septebmer 5, 2017. Nearly 125,000 mostly Rohingya refugees have entered Bangladesh since a fresh upsurge of violence in Myanmar on August 25, the United Nations said September 5, as fears grow of a humanitarian crisis in the overstretched camps. The UN said 123,600 had crossed the border in the past 11 days from Myanmar's violence-wracked Rakhine state. / AFP PHOTO / K M Asad (Photo credit should read K M ASAD/AFP/Getty Images)

Press Release

Restrictions on international aid to Rohingya and Rakhine state putting thousands at risk  

The Myanmar authorities’ restrictions on international aid in Rakhine state is putting tens of thousands of lives at risk in a region where mainly Rohingya people are already suffering horrific abuses from a disproportionate military campaign, Amnesty International said today.

September 4, 2017

Judges stand to deliver their verdict at the Supreme Court in Nairobi on September 1, 2017, ordering a new presidential election within 60 days after cancelling after cancelling the results of last month's poll. Kenya's Supreme Court nullified President Uhuru Kenyatta's election win last month and called for new elections within 60 days. / AFP PHOTO / SIMON MAINA (Photo credit should read SIMON MAINA/AFP/Getty Images)

Press Release

Kenyan Supreme Court annuls presidential election in historic ruling

Responding to the Kenyan Supreme Court’s decision to annul last month’s presidential election and order a re-run, Justus Nyang’aya, Country Director at Amnesty International Kenya, said the following.

September 1, 2017

Crisis Mission - Mexico Border, February 2017

Press Release

Amnesty International USA and Texas Groups Urge U.S. Government to Protect Immigrants’ Rights in Harvey’s Wake

A letter from Amnesty International USA, and local Texas groups Grassroots Leadership and Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES) to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) today raised heightened concerns about Hurricane Harvey’s impact on migrant populations and people seeking asylum.

August 30, 2017

FERGUSON, MO - AUGUST 10: Police stand guard as demonstrators, marking the one-year anniversary of the shooting of Michael Brown, protest along West Florrisant Street on August 10, 2015 in Ferguson, Missouri. Mare than 100 people were arrested today during protests in Ferguson and the St. Louis area. Brown was shot and killed by a Ferguson police officer on August 9, 2014. His death sparked months of sometimes violent protests in Ferguson and drew nationwide focus on police treatment of black suspects. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Press Release

Military Weapons to Local Law Enforcement a Grave Mistake

Following remarks from Attorney General Jeff Sessions stating President Trump’s intention to reverse an executive order by President Obama limiting military weapons to local law enforcement, Justin Mazzola, Amnesty International USA researcher, issued the following statement.

August 28, 2017

AIUSA Executive Director Margaret and AI Secretary General Salil Shetty delivered a letter to the Department of Homeland Security Secretary, outlining numerous personal stories of people who are affected by the Muslim ban, asking DHS to release full information about how the ban has been implemented, and demanding that DHS help roll back the ban. As a part of the protests outside, we projected “No Ban, No Wall” on the building along with photos of refugees in Lebanon and Kenya provided by Magnum Photography.

Press Release

Governments completely out of touch with citizens on refugee issues, new survey reveals

A new survey released by the World Economic Foundation (WEF) on young peoples’ attitudes towards refugees exposes just how out of touch governments are with their citizens, Amnesty International said today.

August 28, 2017

Press Release

Trump’s Transgender Military Policy is Cruel and Discriminatory

Following President Donald Trump’s signing of a new directive banning future transgender individuals serving in the U.S. military, Tarah Demant, Amnesty International USA’s director of Gender, Sexuality, and Identity program issued the following statement.

August 25, 2017

Press Release

Florida conducts its first execution in a year and a half

For the first time since the Supreme Court ruled against the state’s capital sentencing statute, Florida has executed a prisoner, killing Mark Asay via lethal injection.

August 24, 2017

A member of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), made up of an alliance of Kurdish and Arab fighters, looks at smoke rising in the al-Meshleb neighbourhood of Raqa as they try to advance further into the Islamic State (IS) group's Syrian bastion, on June 7, 2017 two days after finally entering the northern city. The SDF alliance began the battle for the city earlier this week after seven months of fighting to surround the key jihadist stronghold. / AFP PHOTO / DELIL SOULEIMAN (Photo credit should read DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP/Getty Images)

Sheet of paper Report

Syria: ‘Deadly labyrinth’ traps civilians trying to flee Raqqa battle against Islamic State

Thousands of civilians trapped in Raqqa, northern Syria, are coming under fire from all sides as the battle for control of the city enters its final stage, Amnesty International said following an in-depth investigation on the ground. The warring parties must prioritize protecting them from hostilities and creating safe ways for them to flee the frontline.

August 23, 2017

Press Release

Amnesty International Reacts to U.S. Withholding Military Aid to Egypt

Following the announcement that the U.S. will withhold military aid to Egypt until it addresses human rights concerns, Adotei Akwei, advocacy director at Amnesty International USA, made the following statement.

August 23, 2017

Press Release

Florida set to conduct its first execution in a year and a half

Ahead of a planned resumption of executions in Florida on August 24, 18 months after the last one, Amnesty International is issuing a paper on recent developments relating to the death penalty in the state.

August 23, 2017