Below you’ll find breaking news as well as reports, updates on our campaigns, and victories.
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Press Release
Health Workers Globally are Silenced, Exposed and Attacked
Governments must be held accountable for the deaths of health and essential workers who they have failed to protect from COVID-19, Amnesty International said today, as it released a new report documenting the experiences of health workers around the world. The organization’s analysis of available data has revealed that more than 3,000 health workers are known to have died from COVID-19 worldwide — a figure which is likely to be a significant underestimate.
July 12, 2020
Press Release
Withdrawal of U.S. from WHO Strikes a Devastating Blow to Global Health
As the Trump administration officially begins taking steps to withdraw the USA from the World Health Organization (WHO), Sanhita Ambast, Amnesty International’s Advisor on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, said:
July 8, 2020
Update
AIUSA letter to Assistant Secretary of State Tibor Nagy Urging Trump administration to Press Nigeria to protect children in Northeast Nigeria from abuses driven by Boko Haram insurgency and government’s counter insurgency
The Honorable Tibor Nagy Assistant Secretary of State Bureau of African Affairs U.S. Department of State C and 22nd Street Washington DC 20520 June 9, 2020 Dear Assistant Secretary Nagy, On behalf of Amnesty International USA, I am writing to urge you to call upon President Buhari to take urgent action to protect children in Northeast Nigeria by 1. Immediately releasing all children held in Giwa Barracks, the Kainji military base, Maiduguri Maximum Prison, Safe Corridor, and other detention facilities associated with the conflict in Northeast Nigeria, or bring them before an independent, civilian court that ensures due process and…
July 6, 2020
Press Release
Court in Turkey deals crushing blow as four human rights activists are convicted
Following a majority court ruling to convict Taner Kılıç for ‘membership of the Fethullah Gülen terrorist organization’ and to convict Özlem Dalkıran, İdil Eser and Günal Kurşun for ‘assisting the Fethullah Gülenterrorist organization’, Andrew Gardner, Amnesty International’s Turkey researcher who observed the hearing said: “Today, we have borne witness to a travesty of justice of spectacular proportions. This verdict is a crushing blow not only for Taner, Özlem, İdil and Günal and their families but for everyone who believes in justice, and human rights activism in Turkey and beyond. “The decision of the court is staggering. During 12 court hearings, each and every allegation has been comprehensively exposed as a baseless…
July 3, 2020
Update
NGO Letter To House Armed Services Calling For an End to Department of Defense 1033 Program that Transfers Military Surplus Equipment to Police
June 30, 2020 Dear House Armed Services Committee Members: The undersigned civil, human rights, faith, and government accountability organizations, representing millions of our members across the country, write in support of ending the Department of Defense’s 1033 Program and associated transfers of all military equipment and vehicles to local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies. The military surplus equipment transfer program, known as the 1033 Program, was formally established in the 1997 FY National Defense Authorization Act. Since its inception, more than $7.4 billion in surplus military equipment and goods, including armored vehicles, rifles, and aircraft, have been transferred to…
July 1, 2020
Press Release
Unlawful “annexation” plan for the occupied West Bank must be stopped
International law is crystal clear on this matter – annexation is unlawful. Israel’s continued pursuit of this policy further illustrates its cynical disregard for international law. Such policies do not change the legal status of the territory under international law and its inhabitants as occupied nor remove Israel’s responsibilities as the occupying power – rather it points to the ‘law of the jungle’ which should not have a place in our world today.
July 1, 2020
Press Release
House Votes to Pass Justice in Policing Act; A Needed First Step in Police Reform
This evening, the House of Representatives passed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act. In response to the vote, Kristina Roth, Senior Program Officer for Criminal Justice Programs at Amnesty International USA, gave the following statement:
June 25, 2020
Press Release
Fact-finding mission to investigate crimes in Libya is a welcome step
We call on all parties to the conflict and their allies to fully cooperate with the fact-finding mission’s investigation team and help facilitate their work with a view to bringing all those responsible for these violations to justice.
June 24, 2020
Update
Vote Recommendation to Representatives on the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act (H.R. 7120) – Vote Yes (6-24-2020)
PDF version June 24, 2020 RE: Vote Recommendation on the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act (H.R. 7120) – VOTE YES Dear Representative: On behalf of Amnesty International USA (“AIUSA”), we recommend you vote YES on the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act (H.R. 7120). This bill is scheduled for a floor vote on June 25. The persistence of police killings of Black people is a direct outgrowth of a law enforcement system that has shielded police abuses from accountability for decades. While AIUSA supports the Justice in Policing Act as a whole, we write to express our serious objections…
June 24, 2020
Press Release
Amnesty International Documents Widespread Police Violence Against Protesters for Black Lives
Police across the U.S. committed widespread and egregious human rights violations against people protesting the unlawful killings of Black people and calling for police reform, Amnesty International said today, as it launched an interactive map of incidents of police violence and a new campaign calling for systemic changes in policing.
June 23, 2020
Update
AIUSA joins dozens of organizations opposing Trump Administration ICC sanctions
On June 11, Amnesty International USA joined dozens of prominent human rights organizations to oppose the latest round of Trump Administration sanctions targeting the International Criminal Court (ICC) and its staff. The full statement can be downloaded here: 2020-06-13 -Updated Statement - Oppose Trump Administration Measures against the International Criminal Court Oppose Trump Administration Measures against the International Criminal Court June 11, 2020 The undersigned organizations express their deep concern regarding today’s announcement by Secretary of State Pompeo and other senior U.S. officials that the United States, among other things, has invoked emergency powers in order to threaten asset freezes…
June 22, 2020
Report
NSO Group spyware used against Moroccan journalist days after company pledged to respect human rights
NSO Group, the Israeli company marketing its technology in the fight against COVID-19, contributed to a sustained campaign by the government of Morocco to spy on Moroccan journalist Omar Radi, a new investigation by Amnesty International reveals. The organization found that Omar Radi’s phone was subjected to multiple attacks using a sophisticated new technique that silently installed NSO Group’s notorious Pegasus spyware. The attacks occurred over a period when Radi was being repeatedly harassed by the Moroccan authorities, with one attack taking place just days after NSO pledged to stop its products being used in human rights abuses and continued…
June 22, 2020