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Press Release

Turkey should urgently ask UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to establish a United Nations investigation into the possible extrajudicial execution of the prominent Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, the Committee to Protect Journalists, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and Reporters Without Borders said today.  The investigation should determine the circumstances surrounding Saudi Arabia’s role in the enforced disappearance and possible killing of Khashoggi. It should aim to identify everyone responsible for ordering, planning, and executing any operations connected with the case. “Turkey should enlist the UN to initiate a timely, credible, and transparent investigation” said Robert Mahoney, deputy executive director of the…

October 18, 2018

Press Release

Responding to news that the Senate voted to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to the United States Supreme Court, Daphne Eviatar, Amnesty International USA's Director of Security with Human Rights said:   “Kavanaugh’s confirmation is devastating as unresolved questions remain about his human rights record, including in relation to the U.S. government’s use of torture and other forms of ill-treatment, such as during the CIA detention program, and as a truly thorough, impartial and transparent investigation of sexual assault allegations has not occurred."   “The vote should have never gone forward in the first place. The fact that the FBI did not even speak to those who…

October 6, 2018

Press Release

Cameroon’s next government must urgently tackle human rights crises in which hundreds of civilians have been killed this year alone and thousands internally displaced amid violence by security forces, Boko Haram and armed separatists in the country’s Far North and Anglophone regions, Amnesty International said ahead of Sunday’s presidential election. “Whoever wins the election cannot ignore the perilous situation for people living in the Far North and Anglophone regions and must prioritize their protection,” said Samira Daoud, Amnesty International Deputy regional director for West and Central Africa. “For far too long, numerous human rights abuses, including arbitrary detention, torture, enforced…

October 4, 2018

Press Release

Responding to the horrific news that 24-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman Zeinab Sekaanvand was executed early this morning in Urumieh central prison, West Azerbaijan province, Philip Luther, Amnesty International’s Research and Advocacy Director for the Middle East and North Africa, said: “The execution of Zeinab Sekaanvand is a sickening demonstration of the Iranian authorities’ disregard for the principles of juvenile justice and international human rights law. Zeinab was just 17 years old at the time of her arrest. Her execution is profoundly unjust and shows the Iranian authorities’ contempt for the right of children to life. The fact that her death…

October 2, 2018

Press Release

Amnesty International USA today called on a halt to a vote on President Trump’s nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court of the United States unless and until any information relevant to Kavanaugh’s possible involvement in human rights violations—including in relation to the U.S. government’s use of torture and other forms of ill-treatment, such as during the CIA detention program—is declassified and made public.   Margaret Huang, Executive Director of Amnesty International USA said:   "Amnesty International takes no position on the appointment of particular individuals to government positions, unless they are reasonably suspected of crimes under international law and could use their appointment…

September 24, 2018

Report

South Sudanese authorities have arbitrarily arrested, detained tortured and ill-treated people to the point of death, despite repeated promises to release detainees, said a new Amnesty International briefing out today. “People in South Sudan have been arrested for their political and ethnic affiliations and are then subjected to unimaginable suffering – sometimes leading to death - at the hands of the government’s security forces,” said Seif Magango, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for East Africa, the Horn and the Great Lakes. The briefing shows that between February and July 2017, four men - Mike Tyson, Alison Mogga Tadeo, Richard Otti and…

September 4, 2018

Press Release

In response to the news that the Australian government is considering denying American activist Chelsea Manning a visa to enter Australia for a series of public talks, Claire Mallinson, National Director of Amnesty International Australia said: “Amnesty International is very concerned that the Australian government is seeking to silence American activist Chelsea Manning by intending to deny her a visa into Australia. “By refusing her entry, the Australian government would send a chilling message that freedom of speech is not valued by our government. It is not too late for the Government to change their mind. “Chelsea Manning is travelling…

August 29, 2018

Press Release

Responding to a scathing report published today by the United Nations Group of Eminent Experts on Yemen (GEE) which concludes that all parties to the conflict may be guilty of war crimes, Lynn Maalouf, Amnesty International’s Middle East research director, said: “The GEE, in its first report, confirms what we have known for the past three years, namely that all parties to the conflict in Yemen have acted with utter disregard for civilian lives. The Saudi Arabia-led coalition and allied forces, Huthi and Yemeni government aligned forces have consistently carried out unlawful attacks, restricted access to humanitarian aid, carried out…

August 28, 2018

Press Release

As rapid technological advances bring “killer robots” ever closer to reality, Amnesty International is calling on states to support the negotiation of new international law to ban fully autonomous weapons systems. The Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW) Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems will meet in Geneva between 27 and 31 August 2018. The meeting is a key moment for states to discuss options for addressing the human rights, humanitarian, ethical and security challenges posed by fully autonomous weapons systems. “Killer robots are no longer the stuff of science fiction. From artificially intelligent drones to automated guns…

August 26, 2018

Press Release

The Department of Defense should investigate thoroughly all claims of civilian casualties caused by its Raqqa offensive as well as all US military operations going forward Amnesty International urged in a letter to Secretary of Defense James N. Mattis following the US-led Coalition's acknowledgement of 77 civilian casualties as a result of military operations in Raqqa. Following Amnesty International's report 'War of annihilation’: Devastating Toll on Civilians, Raqqa – Syria, in June, Amnesty's researchers have cause to believe many civilian causalities remain unacknowledged based on conversations conducted with survivors and witnesses in Raqqa. "Victims and survivors in Raqqa are living with the unimaginable pain of having…

August 21, 2018

Press Release

Amnesty International USA calls upon the Trump administration to refrain from deporting Mauritanians who have sought refuge and safety in the United States without renewed and fair consideration of their claims for protection. Many of them had previously sought asylum based on fears of human rights abuses including possible enslavement and racial discrimination. The Trump administration’s aggressive anti-immigration policies enforced by ICE would place hundreds and possibly thousands of Mauritanians at risk upon their return to the west African nation. “The deportation of individuals back to an environment where they risk possible enslavement shows disdain for their human dignity and…

August 20, 2018

Press Release

An Amnesty International staff member has been targeted by a sophisticated surveillance campaign, in what the organization suspects was a deliberate attempt to spy on its staff by a government hostile to its work. In early June 2018, an Amnesty International staff member received a suspicious WhatsApp message in Arabic. The text contained details about an alleged protest outside the Saudi embassy in Washington D.C., followed by a link to a website. Investigations by Amnesty International’s technology team revealed that clicking the link would have, according to prior knowledge, installed “Pegasus”, a sophisticated surveillance tool developed by the Israel-based company NSO Group. “NSO Group…

August 1, 2018