Newsroom

We put a human face on complex issues to hold governments accountable.

Below you’ll find breaking news as well as reports, updates on our campaigns, and victories.

If you are a member of the press, please reach out to [email protected]

Amnesty International staff stand in Solidarity with Idil Eser, Taner Kiliç, and other activists detained in Turkey. London, England, 18 July, 2017. Amnesty International Turkey’s Chair and Director as well as other prominent human rights defenders behind bars amid a spiralling crackdown. Amnesty Turkey's Chair, Taner Kiliç, was remanded in prison on baseless charges in early June 2017, and the Director of Amnesty Turkey, Idil Eser, was detained alongside seven other prominent human rights activists in July, 2017. They all face criminal investigations on the absurd suspicion of being members of an ‘armed terrorist organisation’.

Press Release

Turkey’s Prosecution Call for Jail Term of Up to 15 Years for Six Human Rights Defenders, Including Amnesty’s Honorary Chair and Former Director, Defies Logic

“Today’s vindictive request by the State Prosecutor for jail terms of up to 15 years ignores the evidence and defies all logic."

November 27, 2019

Press Release

Amnesty’s Ex-Director and Honorary Chair in Turkey Must be Acquitted in Absurd “Terror” Trial

More than two years after they were first detained, the honorary chair, the former director of Amnesty International and nine other human rights defenders must be acquitted of the absurd charges they still face, said Amnesty International ahead of their next trial hearing which resumes tomorrow in Istanbul. 

November 25, 2019

Press Release

Exoneration of Scott Warren is a Triumph for Humanity

In response to the humanitarian volunteer Dr. Scott Warren being found not guilty of the charges against him in a court in Arizona today, Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas director at Amnesty International, said:

November 20, 2019

Iranians walk past a charred bank that was set ablaze by protesters during a demonstration against a rise in gasoline prices in the central city of Isfahan on November 17, 2019. - President Hassan Rouhani warned that riot-hit Iran could not allow "insecurity" after two days of unrest killed two people and saw authorities arrest dozens and restrict internet access. Rouhani defended the controversial petrol price hike that triggered the protests -- a project which the government says will finance social welfare spending amid a sharp economic downturn (Photo by - / AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

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

Categorizing Feminism, Atheism, Homosexuality as Crimes Exposes Saudi Arabia’s Dangerous Intolerance

Responding to an official announcement and a promotional video published by Saudi Arabia’s state security agency which categorizes feminism, homosexuality and atheism as ‘extremist ideas,’ Heba Morayef, Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Director, said:

November 12, 2019

Turkish anti-riot police officers run as Kurds protest against Turkish military operation in Syria, in Istanbul, on October 13, 2019. - Fighting has engulfed the border area in northeastern Syria since Turkey launched an offensive on October 9 to push back the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), displacing 130,000 people so far according to the United Nations, amidst warnings from aid groups of another humanitarian disaster in Syria's eight-year-old war if the offensive is not halted. (Photo by Yasin AKGUL / AFP) (Photo by YASIN AKGUL/AFP via Getty Images)

Sheet of paper Report

Hundreds in Turkey Arrested in Crackdown on Critics of Military Offensive in Syria

Hundreds of people have been detained in Turkey for commenting or reporting on Turkey’s recent military offensive in northeast Syria and are facing absurd criminal charges as the government intensifies its crackdown on critical voices, said Amnesty International in a report published today.

November 1, 2019

Apple released am update of its current firmware for iOS devices after Egyptian journalist Ahmed Mansoor had been targeted on his phone with spyware made by an Israeli company that specialises in the intelligence gathering through personal, electronic devices. (Photo by Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Press Release

Scores of Activists Targeted with NSO Spyware on WhatsApp

Responding to a statement by WhatsApp on Tuesday that spyware produced by the Israeli firm NSO Group was used to target more than 100 human rights activists, Danna Ingleton, Deputy Director of Amnesty Tech, said:

October 29, 2019

Yellow and white graphic with the Amnesty international logo on the bottom left and the word

Sheet of paper Report

Human Rights Defenders in Morocco Targeted Using Malicious NSO Israeli Spyware

Two prominent human rights defenders in Morocco have been targeted using surveillance technology developed by the Israeli-based company NSO Group, according to new research published by Amnesty Tech today.

October 9, 2019

Protesters hold a banner that reads, "Free rights defenders" during a rally outside the court house where the trial of eleven human rights activists is taking place in Istanbul on October 25, 2017. Eleven human rights activists, including the two top figures with Amnesty International in Turkey, are due to go on trial on contested terror charges, seen by the rights watchdog as a test case for the judiciary. / AFP PHOTO / YASIN AKGUL (Photo credit should read YASIN AKGUL/AFP/Getty Images)

Press Release

Turkish Judicial Farce Must End With Acquittal Of Human Rights Defenders

More than two years after they were first detained, the honorary chair and the former Director of Amnesty International Turkey and nine other human rights defenders must be acquitted of the absurd charges they still face, said Amnesty International ahead of their trial which resumes tomorrow in Istanbul. 

October 8, 2019

A general manager of Alarab TV, Jamal Khashoggi, looks on during a press conference in the Bahraini capital Manama, on December 15, 2014. The pan-Arab satellite news broadcaster owned by billionaire Saudi businessman Alwaleed bin Talal will go on air February 1, promising to "break the mould" in a crowded field.AFP PHOTO/ MOHAMMED AL-SHAIKH (Photo by MOHAMMED AL-SHAIKH / AFP) (Photo credit should read MOHAMMED AL-SHAIKH/AFP/Getty Images)

Press Release

One Year After Khashoggi Killing, Saudi Activists Honor His Legacy by Continuing to Fight for Freedom of Expression

One year since the extrajudicial execution of Jamal Khashoggi, Saudi citizens are honoring Khashoggi’s legacy by pursuing the fight for their inalienable right to freely express themselves, despite the authorities’ continuing crackdown and the absence of any meaningful signal to hold accountable those responsible for Jamal Khashoggi’s killing, Amnesty International said today.

October 1, 2019

Egyptian protesters shout slogans as they take part in a protest calling for the removal of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo's downtown on September 20, 2019. - Protestors also gathered in other Egyptian cities calling for the removal of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi but police quickly dispersed them. In Cairo dozens of people joined night-time demonstrations around Tahrir Square -- the epicenter of the 2011 revolution that toppled the country's long-time autocratic leader. (Photo by STR / AFP) (Photo credit should read STR/AFP/Getty Images)

Press Release

World Leaders Must Act To Stop Egyptian President al-Sisi’s Repressive Crackdown

Ahead of further protests expected on Friday, world leaders must confront President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and utterly condemn the crackdown he has waged to counter the outbreak of protests in recent days, said Amnesty International as heads of state meet at the UN General Assembly in New York this week.

September 24, 2019

Press Release

Amnesty International to Participate in Hearings and Events at IACHR Sessions

Amnesty International will participate in public hearings on protests and security in Honduras and on limits of access to asylum in the United States, as well as side events on institutional violence and discrimination against women engaged in sex work in the Americas, and on women’s sexual and reproductive rights in Venezuela, during the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights’ 173rd Period of Sessions from September 23 to October 2 in Washington DC.

September 20, 2019