According to a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report released Wednesday, more than 180 bodies have been found on the outskirts of Djibo, a town in northern Burkina Faso. Human Rights Watch reports that those buried were all men. Residents found the bodies in groups ranging from 3 to 20 on the outskirts of Djibo from [...]

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian announced Wednesday that China would impose visa restrictions on US personnel “behaving badly” on Tibet-related issues. The announcement followed US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s Tuesday announcement that visa restrictions on certain Chinese officials would be imposed under the Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act of 2018, for the lack [...]

A United Nations Human Rights Council report released on Tuesday concluded that Syrian and Russian airstrikes on civilian infrastructure in Syria’s Idlib province amounted to war crimes. The report assessed events that happened in Idlib province between November 1, 2019, and June 1, 2020. During this time, Idlib province was controlled by an armed group [...]

President Donald Trump notified United Nation officials of US withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday, effective July 2021. A White House official confirmed the UN notification. This comes after Trump signaled his intent to withdraw in May, resting his decision on the WHO’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. The US currently donates [...]

Hong Kong released more details Monday on China’s new national security law, which, among other things, will enable authorities to prevent people under investigation from leaving Hong Kong. Under the legislation, secession and sedition will be punishable by imprisonment up to life. Foreign and Taiwan political organizations and agents will be required to provide information [...]

In a report released on Tuesday, UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions Agnes Callamard claimed the US drone strike that killed Qasem Soleimani and nine others violated international law. Callamard called the killing of Soleimani by a US drone strike an “arbitrary killing” that violates the UN Charter. Additionally, Callamard addressed the [...]

In a statement to the House of Commons on Monday, UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab introduced new sanctions on 49 human rights abusers. The new global human rights regime provides accountability for individuals and organizations, unlike typical sanctions regimes, which target nations. It aims to protect individuals’ rights. Encompassing both “the right to life,” and [...]

A Turkish court on Friday convicted four human rights activists on terrorism charges. Among those convicted was Taner Kilic, a former chair of Amnesty International, an organization that fights for human rights. The prosecution argued that the four activists were actually members or assistants of the Fethullah Gülen terrorist organization. However, concerns have arisen about [...]

The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress in Beijing on Tuesday passed a new national security law (English) dramatically restricting freedom and autonomy within the region. The law remained unpublished until only an hour before it went into effect on Wednesday, and several arrests under the new regulations have already been made. Generally, the [...]

Russian President Vladimir Putin won a referendum vote on Thursday, allowing him to stay in office through 2036. Putin’s constitutional amendments garnered close to 78 percent of the votes. Approximately 65 percent of voters turned out. The constitutional amendments in the referendum already cleared the national parliament in Moscow and were ratified by regional legislatures [...]