Search Results for: Cuba and Human rights

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk warned Monday that the expansion of US sanctions against Cuba is causing widespread harm to the population and endangering lives, calling for the sanctions to be lifted immediately. Türk’s statement identified two overlapping measures: the national emergency declared by President Trump in January, which disrupted fuel shipments [...]

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Editor’s note: Dimitri Lascaris traveled to Iran from March 20–31, 2026, as part of a small group of foreign journalists invited by Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), Iran’s state broadcaster, which operates under the supervision of the Supreme Leader’s office. IRIB organized the group’s itinerary and provided in-country guidance. Lascaris states that he declined [...]

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Cuba announced that it will release 2,010 prisoners as part of a pardon approved under Article 90(II) of the country’s Constitution. The government described the release as a humanitarian gesture undertaken for with Holy Week. The government stated that the decision followed a formal review process. The review considered the nature of the offenses, behavior [...]

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The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) on Wednesday adopted a resolution by consensus, condemning Iran’s ongoing military strikes against Gulf states and Jordan at its 44th meeting of the 61st session. The UNHRC denounced the attacks as “egregious,” “unprovoked and deliberate,” and demanded that Tehran provide full and prompt reparations to victims.  The decision [...]

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Nicaragua ended visa-free travel for Cuban citizens on Sunday, cutting off a pathway for Cubans seeking to enter the US. The order requires Cuban citizens to now carry more than an ordinary passport to travel in Nicaragua. The move is a shift away from Nicaragua’s “visa-free” policy for Cuban citizens, implemented in 2021 to promote [...]

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Cuban authorities are escalating surveillance and harassment of families of political prisoners while denying adequate medical care to jailed dissidents, Amnesty International said Monday. The human rights organization reported that relatives of prisoners of conscience face police cordons around their homes, movement restrictions, and threats, and that these actions are occurring in the absence of [...]

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A UN expert urged states to recognize hostage-taking as a crime against humanity on Thursday. The statement comes as a preparatory committee is drafting a treaty on crimes against humanity. The Special Rapporteur on torture, Alice Jill Edwards, called on states participating in the negotiations to include hostage-taking as a crime against humanity in the [...]

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