Below you’ll find breaking news as well as reports, updates on our campaigns, and victories.
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Press Release
New Research Finds Facial Recognition Technology Is Reinforcing Racist Stop-and-Frisk Policing in New York
New Yorkers living in areas at greater risk of stop-and-frisk by police are also more exposed to invasive facial recognition technology (FRT), new research by Amnesty International and partners has revealed.
February 14, 2022
Update
Amnesty International USA Statement for the Record for February 9th hearing on “‘Targeted Killing’ and the Rule of Law: The Legal and Human Costs of 20 Years of U.S. Drone Strikes”
On behalf of Amnesty International USA and our members and supporters in the United States, we hereby submit this statement for the record to address our concerns that the United States has at times failed to abide by international humanitarian law and international human rights law in its use of air strikes that have harmed large numbers of civilians over the past 20 years.
February 9, 2022
Press Release
Biden Administration Must Uphold Human Rights for Palestinians in Israel and in the OPT
In response to yesterday and today’s comments from U.S. State Department officials on U.S. relations with Israeli and Palestinian authorities, Paul O’Brien, Executive Director at Amnesty International USA said: “Amnesty International USA appreciates the State Department’s attention to our report in yesterday’s press briefing, as well as continued committments from Secretary Blinken towards improving ‘quality of life for the Palestinian people in tangible ways’ and reiterating that ‘Israelis and Palestinians alike deserve equal measures of security, freedom, opportunity and dignity’ as Israelis. We agree. We hope the Biden administration shares our desire to have meaningful conversations about our research and,…
February 1, 2022
Update
Amnesty International USA statement for the record for Feb. 1 Senate Committee on Foreign Relations hearing on ‘Sudan’s Imperiled Transition’
On January 24th, 2022, Amnesty International USA's National Director for Advocacy and Government Relations Joanne Lin and Almami Cyllah Fellow Makeda Fikremariam submitted the following statement for the record to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on 'Sudan's Imperiled Transition'.In this statement, Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) details our research on human rights concerns relating to Sudan, especially following the October 25, 2021 coup, the use of lethal force by security forces and unlawful detentions. AIUSA calls on the Biden Administration and Congress to take urgent action and to call on the Sudanese government to end the continued use of lethal…
January 31, 2022
Update
Amnesty International Statement for the Record on Sudan following October 25 Coup and Need for U.S Action – Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission Hearing
On January 24th, 2022, Amnesty International USA's National Director for Advocacy and Government Relations Joanne Lin and Almami Cyllah Fellow Makeda Fikremariam submitted the following statement for the record to the House Tom Lantos Rights Commission hearing on "The Military Coup in Sudan: Implications for Human Rights". In this statement, Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) details our research on human rights concerns relating to Sudan, especially following the October 25, 2021 coup, the use of lethal force by security forces and unlawful detentions. AIUSA calls on the Biden Administration and Congress to take urgent action and to call on the Sudanese…
January 31, 2022
Press Release
Further Armed Conflict in Ukraine Would Have Devastating Consequences for the Human Rights of Millions
With the threat of Russia using military force looming, Amnesty International warns that another escalation of the armed conflict in Ukraine will have devastating consequences for human rights in the region; threatening civilian lives, livelihoods and infrastructure; driving acute food shortages; and potentially causing mass displacement.
January 27, 2022
Update
Yemen: US-made weapon used in air strike that killed scores in escalation of Saudi-led coalition attacks
The Saudi-led coalition used a precision-guided munition made in the United States in last week’s air strike on a detention center in Sa’adah, north-western Yemen, which, according to Doctors without Borders, killed at least 80 people and injured over 200, Amnesty International said today. The laser-guided bomb used in the attack, manufactured by U.S. defense company Raytheon, is the latest piece in a wider web of evidence of the use of U.S.-manufactured weapons in incidents that could amount to war crimes. Over the past week, the Saudi-led coalition (SLC) has relentlessly pounded northern Yemen with air strikes — including the…
January 26, 2022
Press Release
Conviction of Syrian official for crimes against humanity a historic win for justice
Responding to a decision of the Higher Regional Court in Koblenz, Germany, which has convicted former Syrian intelligence officer Anwar Raslan to life in prison for crimes against humanity, including torture, murder and rape of detainees in Branch 251, an infamous military intelligence facility in Damascus city, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa, Lynn Maalouf, said: “Today’s verdict is a historic victory that amplifies the voices of tens of thousands of survivors of unlawful detention, torture and sexual violence, as well as the voices of the families of victims who died in Syria’s prisons and…
January 13, 2022
Press Release
Kazakhstani Authorities Must Release Arbitrarily Detained Protestors and Respect Human Rights Amid Ongoing Unrest
The Kazakhstani authorities must release journalists and activists who have been arbitrarily detained for their coverage of mass protests across the country over the past week, provide information on all protest-related arrests and ensure human rights of all detainees, said Amnesty International, as the number of individuals arrested since protests began on January 2 reached close to 10,000 according to official government figures.
January 11, 2022
Press Release
Ordering security forces to ‘fire without warning’ a recipe for disaster in Kazakhstan
Reacting to a televised address this morning (January 7) by Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev calling for security forces to “fire without warning” at any further disturbances following the recent mass protests and violence, Marie Struthers, Amnesty International’s Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, said: “The Kazakhstani authorities have a duty to maintain order, but giving blanket approval for police officers and troops to fire without warning is unlawful and a recipe for disaster. It could pave the way for knee-jerk reactions that result in unlawful killings. Unless this order is immediately and clearly revoked, Kazakhstan’s already abysmal human rights…
January 7, 2022
Press Release
20 Years Later, US Government Continues to Perpetuate Grave Human Rights Abuses at Guantánamo Prison
The military prison at Guantánamo Bay continues to facilitate grave violations of human rights by the U.S. Government. Ahead of the 20th anniversary of the military prison’s opening on January 11, 2001, Daphne Eviatar, Director of the Security with Human Rights Program at Amnesty International USA, said: “This is an anniversary that should never have been reached. Since the Bush administration, there has been agreement among national security experts and across the political spectrum that the Guantánamo prison – a notorious site of torture and unjustifiable indefinite detention – should be closed.
January 7, 2022
Press Release
New wave of atrocities in Ethiopia’s Western Tigray
Amhara security forces are responsible for a surge of mass detentions, killings and forced expulsions of ethnic Tigrayans in the Western Tigray territory of northern Ethiopia, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said today.
December 16, 2021