News | Human Rights Watch

February 23, 2026 News Release

Northeast Syria: Camp Closures Leave Thousands Stranded

Many Countries Refuse to Repatriate Their Citizens

Syrian security forces take control of al-Hol camp in the desert region of al-Hasakah Province, Syria, on January 21, 2026, following the withdrawal of Kurdish forces the previous day.

February 23, 2026 Commentary

Independent Living Begins in Childhood

Support for Those with Disabilities Should Go Beyond the Family

February 23, 2026 Letter

Belarus: Renewal of Special Rapporteur and Group of Experts Vital to Address Unrelenting Human Rights Crisis

61st Session of the UN Human Rights Council

February 20, 2026 Dispatches

Abuses in Cameroon After US Deports Third-Country Nationals

US and Cameroon Partner in Rights Violations; Cameroon Not Safe for Deportees

Cars drive through an intersection near a monument in Yaoundé, Cameroon, September12, 2025.

February 20, 2026 Dispatches

Haiti Criminal Groups Trafficking Children Amid State Collapse

UN Report Documents Recruitment Tactics, Exploitation, and Failures in Protection

A 17-year-old Carrefour resident, associated with a criminal group, stands on a terrace, gazing out over the horizon in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, July 2024.

February 20, 2026 Dispatches

Mercury Latest Trump Rollback of Environmental Protections

Notorious Neurotoxin Especially Harmful to Maternal and Child Health

A coal-fired plant in the town of Poca near the Kanawha River, in West Virginia, US, August 28, 2018.

February 20, 2026 Dispatches

Anniversary of Fatal Italy Shipwreck Comes Amid New Tragedies

EU Should Renounce Deadly Border Polices, Prioritize Saving Lives

Relatives of a person who went missing after a migrant boat sank on February 26 on the beach near where the shipwreck took place off the coast of Steccato di Cutro, near Crotone, in Calabria in southern Italy. March 7, 2023.

February 20, 2026 News Release

North Korea: Party Congress Set to Bolster Repression

Tightened Control over Youth, Information; Widespread Forced Labor

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un delivers a speech during the ruling Workers’ Party Congress in Pyongyang, February 19, 2026.

February 19, 2026 Dispatches

Olympic Ban Raises Thorny Free Speech Issues

Ukrainian Athlete’s Disqualification Spotlights Prohibition on Political Statements

Ukraine’s Vladyslav Heraskevych wearing a helmet honoring Ukrainian athletes killed since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine during skeleton training at the 2026 Winter Olympics, Italy, February 9, 2026.

February 19, 2026 Dispatches

Six Years of Denied Justice in Hanau

German Government Fails to Address Systemic Racism

Demonstrators mark the anniversary of a far-right extremist attack on February 19, 2020 in Hanau, Germany, that killed nine persons of predominantly Muslim background, February 17, 2024.

February 19, 2026 Statement

Attacks on UN Expert on Crimes Against Palestinians

Foreign Minister Responded to Doctored Video

February 19, 2026 Letter

South Sudan: Extend UN Investigations, Stand Ready to Respond to Any Further Deterioration of the Human Rights Situation

Civil society joint letter ahead of the 61st session of the UN Human Rights Council

February 19, 2026 Dispatches

Trinidadian Nationals Face Escalating Abuse in Syrian Camp

Conditions Worsen as Trinidad and Tobago Government Delays Repatriations

A woman poses for a portrait in front of a UNHCR tent

February 19, 2026 Dispatches

Sweden Deporting Young People

Forced Out as They ‘Age Out,’ as Families Remain

Exterior of the Swedish Migration Agency's offices in Stockholm

February 19, 2026 Report

Russia: Attacks on Abortion Undermine Women’s Rights

Shrinking Reproductive Options, Growing Pressure, Disinformation

Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers remarks at the 2024 National Healthcare Congress at the Kremlin, in Moscow, October 29, 2024.

Keyword

Country

Topic

Africa
-African Union
-Angola
-Benin
-Botswana
-Burkina Faso
-Burundi
-Cameroon
-Cape Verde
-Central African Republic
-Chad
-Comoros
-Congo (Brazzaville)
-Côte d'Ivoire
-Democratic Republic of Congo
-Djibouti
-Equatorial Guinea
-Eritrea
-Eswatini (formerly Swaziland)
-Ethiopia
-Gabon
-Gambia
-Ghana
-Guinea
-Guinea-Bissau
-Kenya
-Lesotho
-Liberia
-Madagascar
-Malawi
-Mali
-Mauritius
-Mozambique
-Namibia
-Niger
-Nigeria
-Rwanda
-Senegal
-Seychelles
-Sierra Leone
-Somalia
-South Africa
-South Sudan
-Sudan
-Tanzania
-Togo
-Uganda
-Zambia
-Zimbabwe
Americas
-Antigua and Barbuda
-Argentina
-Bahamas
-Barbados
-Belize
-Bolivia
-Brazil
-Canada
-Chile
-Colombia
-Costa Rica
-Cuba
-Dominican Republic
-Ecuador
-El Salvador
-Falklands/Malvinas
-Grenada
-Guatemala
-Guyana
-Haiti
-Honduras
-Jamaica
-Mexico
-Nicaragua
-Panama
-Paraguay
-Peru
-Saint Kitts and Nevis
-Saint Lucia
-Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
-Suriname
-Trinidad and Tobago
-Uruguay
-Venezuela
Asia
-Afghanistan
-Australia
-Bangladesh
-Bhutan
-Brunei
-Cambodia
-China and Tibet
-Cook Islands
-Federated States of Micronesia
-Fiji
-India
-Indonesia
-Japan
-Kiribati
-Laos
-Malaysia
-Maldives
-Marshall Islands
-Mongolia
-Myanmar (Burma)
-Nauru
-Nepal
-New Zealand
-Niue
-North Korea
-Pakistan
-Palau
-Papua New Guinea
-Philippines
-Samoa
-Singapore
-Solomon Islands
-South Korea
-Sri Lanka
-Taiwan
-Thailand
-Timor-Leste
-Tonga
-Tuvalu
-Vanuatu
-Vietnam
Europe/Central Asia
-Albania
-Andorra
-Armenia
-Austria
-Azerbaijan
-Belarus
-Belgium
-Bosnia and Herzegovina
-Bulgaria
-Croatia
-Cyprus
-Czech Republic
-Denmark
-Estonia
-European Union
-Finland
-France
-Georgia
-Germany
-Greece
-Holy See
-Hungary
-Iceland
-Ireland
-Italy
-Kazakhstan
-Kyrgyzstan
-Latvia
-Liechtenstein
-Lithuania
-Macedonia
-Malta
-Moldova
-Monaco
-Montenegro
-Netherlands
-Norway
-Poland
-Portugal
-Romania
-Russia
-San Marino
-Serbia/Kosovo
-Slovak Republic
-Slovenia
-Spain
-Sweden
-Switzerland
-Tajikistan
-Türkiye
-Turkmenistan
-Ukraine
-United Kingdom
-Uzbekistan
Global
Middle East/North Africa
-Algeria
-Bahrain
-Egypt
-Iran
-Iraq
-Israel/Palestine
-Jordan
-Kuwait
-Lebanon
-Libya
-Mauritania
-Morocco/Western Sahara
-Oman
-Qatar
-Saudi Arabia
-Syria
-Tunisia
-United Arab Emirates
-Yemen
United States
-Criminal Justice
-Immigrants’ Rights and Border Policy
-National Security
-US Foreign Policy
-Democracy
-Economic Justice
-Racial Justice

Arms
-Cluster Munitions
-Killer Robots
-Landmines
-Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas
-Incendiary Weapons
Children's Rights
-Education
-Attacks on Education
-Children Separated from Families
-Children and Armed Conflict
-Child Labor
-Youth Justice
-Migrant and Refugee Children
-Intersex Children
Crisis and Conflict
Disability Rights
-Shackling
Economic Justice and Rights
-Corporate Accountability
-Oil, Mining, and Natural Resources
-Poverty and Inequality
-World Bank, IMF
Environment and Human Rights
-Climate Change
-Deforestation
-Fossil Fuels
Free Speech
-Press Freedom
-Religious Freedom
Health
-Sexual and Reproductive Health
-Detention Centers
-Disasters and Displaced Populations
-Environment and Health
-Health Care Access
-HIV/AIDS and Tuberculosis
-Palliative Care
-Attacks on Health
LGBT Rights
Refugees and Migrants
-Asylum Seekers
-Internally Displaced People
-Exploitation, Forced Labor & Trafficking
-Migrants
Rights of Older People
International Justice
-Charles Taylor
-International Criminal Court
-Joseph Kony - Lord's Resistance Army
-Peace and Justice
-Bosco Ntaganda
-Universal Jurisdiction
Technology and Rights
-Digital Investigations Lab
Terrorism / Counterterrorism
-CIA Activities
-Detention without Trial
-Edward Snowden
-Guantanamo
-Guantanamo - Military Commissions
-Targeted Killings and Drones
Torture
United Nations
-Human Rights Council
Women's Rights
-Forced Marriage
-Gender Based Violence
-Domestic Workers
-Gender Equality
-Reproductive Rights
-Sexual Violence
-Labor Rights
-Sex Work
-Women and Armed Conflict
-Women’s Health

#MeToo
'Remain in Mexico'
Azerbaijan Natural Resources and Human Rights
Beijing Winter Olympics 2022
Boko Haram
Brexit
Chechnya
China's Global Influence
Climate Talks 2017
COP27 - Climate Change Conference
COP28 - Climate Change Conference
COP29 - Climate Change Conference
COP30 - Climate Change Conference
Coronavirus
Crimes Against Humanity Treaty
Daily Brief
Disappearances in Yemen
Drugs and Human Rights
Duterte
Education for Syrian Refugee Children
Egypt Crackdown on Civil Society
Encryption
Ethiopian Protests
Europe: Refugees & Migrants’ Rights
Ferguson
FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022
Free Education for all Children
Gender-based Violence at Work
German Election
Global Supply Chains
Guinea's 2009 Stadium Massacre Trial
Hissène Habré
Hong Kong
Honor Killings
Iraq War 20 Years Later
ISIS
kafala system
Kashmir
Land Rights
Liu Xiaobo
Los Angeles Film Club
Mass Surveillance in China
Mediterranean Crisis
Mexico: Lessons from a Human Rights Catastrophe
Middle East Uprising
Nagorno-Karabakh
Philippines’ ‘War on Drugs’
Rabaa Massacre
Refugee Summits
Reparations in the United States
Right to Social Security
Rights of Persons with Albinism
Rohingya
Russia-Ukraine War
The Trial of Hissène Habré
The Trump Administration and Human Rights
Tigray Conflict
Uganda Elections 2016
US: Trump Presidential Transition
Uyghurs
World Cup 2018
World Humanitarian Summit
World Report 2024 News Releases
World Report 2025 News Releases
World Report 2026 News Releases
Xenophobia
Yahya Jammeh

Protecting Rights, Saving Lives