A group of UN independent experts on Wednesday denounced the assassination of human rights advocate Zweli “Khabazela” Mkhize, and urged South Africa to hold perpetrators accountable. The experts, referred to as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council, stated: We urge South Africa to ensure a prompt, effective, impartial and thorough investigation into the [...]

UN experts on Thursday insisted on accountability for trafficking allegations contained in the Epstein files, warning that disclosures emerging from the documents indicate that the systemic trafficking continues. UN experts Siobhán Mullally, Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons, especially women and children, as well as Claudia Flores, Ivana Krstić, Dorothy Estrada Tanck, Haina Lu and [...]

Amnesty International applauded on Wednesday the Italian government’s suspension its decades-long defense agreement with Israel, due to growing opposition to the Israeli military operations in the Middle East. Italy’s decision marks a departure from the right-wing government’s traditional supportive relationship with Israel. Opposition parties and Italian civil society voices had pushed for the action, as [...]

Maine’s legislature on Tuesday passed a temporary moratorium on the construction of large data centers through November 1, 2027, making Maine the first state in the US to impede facility expansion as lawmakers study their strain on the state’s power grid. The bill prohibits state agencies and municipalities from approving data centers that consume 20 [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) released a statement on Wednesday in support of a group in Zambia that has called for the African Union to take steps to clean up a mine site that has caused child led-poisoning. Complainants included the Institute for Human Rights and Development in Africa, Zambian nongovernmental organizations, and affected families. The [...]

A US federal jury Wednesday found Live Nation Entertainment and its subsidiary Ticketmaster violated multiple federal antitrust laws, determining the companies held an illegal monopoly over the live entertainment industry and overcharged consumers $1.72 per ticket. The verdict, reached in United States v. Live Nation Entertainment before the US District Court for the Southern District [...]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported Thursday that Chinese authorities are increasing their pressure on “underground” Catholic communities to join the state-controlled church. The recent intensification includes subjecting clergy to intense political or ideological training. Greater restrictions have also been imposed on religious activities on official church premises, including registration requirements for church services and the [...]

A group of seven UN experts expressed alarm on Wednesday about a new law aimed at silencing LGBTQ+ voices and proponents of human and women’s rights in Belarus. The experts were concerned that this repression would breed further harassment and marginalization of LGBTQ+ individuals, women, and other minority groups: This law represents a dangerous escalation. [...]

Amnesty International called the conviction and sentencing of 19 activists who participated in a peaceful protest in Kazakhstan a “travesty of justice,” in a press release on Tuesday. The protest was intended to raise awareness of and to help end human rights abuses in China’s Xinjiang region.  Marie Struthers, Amnesty International’s director for Eastern Europe [...]

Singaporean authorities are scheduled on Thursday to execute a man convicted of importing just over a kilogram of cannabis across the country’s border in a case that has drawn urgent condemnation from human rights organizations, the European Union, and a growing chorus of international observers. Omar bin Yacob Bamadhaj, 41, was arrested in 2018 after [...]