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Report
Death penalty 2019: Global executions fell by 5%, hitting a 10-year low
Saudi Arabia executed a record number of people in 2019, despite an overall decline in executions worldwide, Amnesty International said in its 2019 global review of the death penalty published today. The Saudi authorities put 184 people to death last year, the highest number Amnesty has ever recorded in a single year in the country. Meanwhile the number of executions doubled in Iraq, and Iran retained its place as the world’s second most prolific executioner after China, where the exact number of people put to death remains a state secret. However these states are bucking a global trend which saw…
April 20, 2020
Press Release
Prisoners killed in Iran by Security Forces During COVID-19 Pandemic Protests
Around 36 prisoners in Iran are feared to have been killed by security forces after the use of lethal force to control protests over COVID-19 safety fears, Amnesty International has learned.
April 9, 2020
Press Release
Workshop for media featuring Nazanin Boniadi and the Middle East Institute will examine COVID-19 impact on the Middle East and North Africa
As part of a series of workshops exploring human rights concerns related to the COVID-19 response, Amnesty International USA will be holding a workshop titled “The impact of COVID-19 on the Middle East and North Africa”. The workshop will cover how COVID-19 has disrupted the lives of millions of people living throughout the Middle East and North Africa and discuss ways the impact can be mitigated, ways that the public is coming together during the pandemic, as well as recommendations of how governments can respond. These are extraordinary times, but it’s critical to stress that respect for human rights is…
April 7, 2020
Press Release
Prisoner pardons in Iran welcome, but hundreds more who should be free remain jailed
Responding to the announcement by the Iranian authorities that pardons will be granted to prisoners convicted of “security” offenses who have a five-year prison sentence or less, and that those who have been granted leave in recent weeks will not be returned to prison, Philip Luther, Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Research and Advocacy Director, said: “Amnesty International welcomes the release of anyone detained as a prisoner of conscience, although they should not have been in prison in the first place. “No one should spend a single day in prison for peacefully exercising their rights, and it is…
March 18, 2020
Press Release
New Evidence Shows At Least 23 Children Killed in Iran by Security Forces During November Protests
An investigation by Amnesty International has uncovered evidence that at least 23 children were killed by Iranian security forces in the nationwide protests in November last year.
March 3, 2020
Press Release
Scores Injured as Security Forces Use Unlawful Force to Crush Protests in Iran
Verified video footage, photographs and testimonies from victims and eyewitnesses on the ground obtained by Amnesty International, confirm that Iranian security forces used unlawful force against peaceful protesters who gathered across Iran following the authorities’ admission that they had shot down a Ukrainian passenger plane on January 8.
January 15, 2020
Press Release
Thousands in Iran arbitrarily detained and at risk of torture in chilling post-protest crackdown
Iran’s authorities are carrying out a vicious crackdown following the outbreak of nationwide protests on November 15, arresting thousands of protesters as well as journalists, human rights defenders and students to stop them from speaking out about Iran’s ruthless repression, said Amnesty International today. The organization has carried out interviews with dozens of people inside Iran who described how, in the days and weeks during and following the protests, the Iranian authorities have held detainees incommunicado and subjected them to enforced disappearance, torture and other ill-treatment. At least 304 people were killed and thousands were injured between November 15 and 18 as authorities crushed…
December 15, 2019
Press Release
Death Toll from Bloody Crackdown on Protests in Iran Rises to 208
The number of people believed to have been killed during demonstrations in Iran that broke out on November 15 has risen to at least 208, said Amnesty International, based on credible reports received by the organization. The real figure is likely to be higher.
December 2, 2019
Press Release
World Must Strongly Condemn Iran’s Use of Lethal Force Against Protesters as Death Toll Rises to 143
The international community must denounce the intentional lethal use of force by Iranian security forces that has resulted in the killings of at least 143 protesters since demonstrations broke out on November 15, Amnesty International said today.
November 25, 2019
Press Release
More Than 100 Protestors Believed to be Killed As Top Officials Give Green Light to Crush Protests in Iran
Verified video footage, eyewitness testimony from people on the ground and information gathered from human rights activists outside Iran reveal a harrowing pattern of unlawful killings by Iranian security forces, which have used excessive and lethal force to crush largely peaceful protests in more than 100 cities across Iran sparked by a hike in fuel prices on November 15, said Amnesty International today.
November 19, 2019
Press Release
Write For Rights: Amnesty International Launches Global Campaign Championing Youth Activists
Amnesty International has today launched Write for Rights, the world’s biggest human rights campaign, which this year champions children’s rights and youth activists.
November 17, 2019
Press Release
Iranian Tear Gas Grenades Among Those Causing Gruesome Protester Deaths in Iraq
Amnesty International has conducted further research into the 40mm “less lethal” grenades killing protesters during the recent violence in Baghdad. The new analysis showed that, in addition to the Serbian Sloboda Ĉaĉak M99 grenades already identified, a significant portion of the deadly projectiles are in fact M651 tear gas grenades and M713 smoke grenades manufactured by the Defense Industries Organization (DIO) of Iran.
November 7, 2019