The call accompanies the launch of a key report by OHCHR, highlighting also the need for the Government to acknowledge the involvement of State security forces and to issue a public apology. From the 1970s to 2009, Sri Lanka witnessed widespread enforced disappearances, predominantly carried out by the national army and associated paramilitary groups. …
UNAIDS, the main advocate for coordinated global action on the HIV/AIDS pandemic, and the UN Development Progarmme (UNDP) offices in India have been important partners in this effort. On this International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT), celebrated annually on 17 May, we reflect on the journey of some members of this community in…
According to the UN human rights office, OHCHR, the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, held separate phone calls on Tuesday with Lt-General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, Commander of the Sudanese Armed Forces, and General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, who leads the rival Rapid Support Forces. Diplomatic approach Mr. Türk urged them both to act immediately…
“The safety of civilians, homes, schools and hospitals must be ensured. They are not a target,” Denise Brown said in a statement, underscoring that international humanitarian law must be respected. Ms. Brown said these latest attacks came a day after she returned from the Kharkiv region in northeastern Ukraine, which has come under relentless shelling…
Dr. Adnan Al Bursh, 50, the head of the orthopaedic department at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, died on April 19, 2024, in Ofer prison, a detention facility in the West Bank. His body has not yet been released by Israeli authorities. Before his death, he had reportedly been beaten in prison, with his body…
The Law on Transparency of Foreign Influence requires media, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other nonprofits to register as “pursuing the interests of a foreign power” if they receive more than 20 per cent of their funding from abroad. It was adopted on Tuesday. The adoption has sparked protests in the capital, Tbilisi, and has been…
Concluding an official visit to the Horn of Africa nation Isha Dyfan highlighted the impact on civilians, especially women and children, who continue to bear the brunt of deadly attacks carried out by Al-Shabaab terrorists. “I strongly condemn the continued deadly attacks perpetrated by Al-Shabaab and urge the Government to take all steps to ensure…
Volker Türk said he was concerned by the increasing number of journalists charged, convicted and jailed for their independent reporting, in what appears to be an intensification of a crackdown on dissenting voices. He described the continuous attacks on free speech and the criminalization of independent journalism in Russia as “very troubling”. “The intensification of the crackdown on journalists’ independent…
The experts detailed the far-reaching impacts of the violence and lawlessness that has led to chaos across the capital, Port-au=Prince, and other areas under gang control this year. “The outbreak of violence in Haiti has resulted in loss of livelihoods and food insecurity, widespread and multiple displacement, the collapse of education, breakdown of healthcare and…
When tensions erupted in East Jerusalem in April 2021 at the beginning of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan, daily clashes involving Palestinians, Israeli settlers and Israeli forces led to spiraling violence and death. In response, the Human Rights Council set up a top panel of independent rights experts to investigate reports of violations of…
