Palestinian Armed Groups’ October 7 Assault on Israel
The 236-page report, “‘I Can’t Erase All the Blood from My Mind’: Palestinian Armed Groups’ October 7 Assault on Israel,” documents several dozen cases of serious violations of international humanitarian law by Palestinian armed groups at nearly all the civilian attack sites on October 7. These include the war crimes and crimes against humanity of murder, hostage-taking, and other grave offenses. Human Rights Watch also examined the role of various armed groups and their coordination before and during the attacks. Previous Human Rights Watch reports have addressed numerous serious violations by Israeli forces in Gaza since October 7.
International Support for the Perpetrators of the Rwandan Genocide
After a year in exile, the perpetrators of the Rwandan genocide have rebuilt their military infrastructure, largely in Zaire, and are rearming themselves in preparation for a violent return to Rwanda.
This report — the fourth in a series — documents Russian forces' flagrant human rights violations against the civilian population in the ongoing conflict with Chechen rebels.
One year after the genocide began in Rwanda, the crisis continues. Despite calls for justice inside and outside the country, no criminal trials, national or international, have taken place. The Rwandan government is now arresting some 1,500 persons a week, producing life-threatening overcrowding and appalling treatment in the prisons and fostering insecurity among the population at large.
Human Rights Abuses Along the U.S. Border with Mexico Persist Amid Climate of Impunity
U.S. Border Patrol agents are committing serious human rights violations, including unjustified shootings, rapes and beatings, while enjoying virtual impunity for their actions.
One year after the genocide began in Rwanda, the crisis continues. Despite calls for justice, no criminal trials, national or international, have taken place. As of April 1995, the Rwandan government was arresting some 1,500 persons a week, producing life-threatening overcrowding and appalling treatment in the prisons and fostering insecurity among the population at large.
The departure of the last U.N. troops of the Somalia operation in March 1995 marks a critical juncture for Somalia, and for international peacekeeping. In researching this report, we set out to discover what would be left behind when the U.N.
The current epidemic of communal violence--violence involving groups that define themselves by their differences of religion, ethnicity, language or race--is today's paramount human rights problem.
Germany has been confronted with a disturbing escalation in violent crimes against those who are different, and especially those who are perceived as not ethnic German during the period since unification. Racism that is endemic in many societies has exploded in a public way in Germany.
Human Rights Watch opposes the imposition of the death penalty on all criminal offenders in all circumstances because of its inherent cruelty. In addition, Human Rights Watch is concerned that the death penalty is most often carried out in a discriminatory manner on racial, ethnic, religious or political grounds.
Prisoners in Japan face routine violations of human rights from the moment of arrest through the end of their prison term. After being apprehended, Japanese suspects are placed in police detention (daiyo-kangoku) where they face severe pressure, often involving physical abuse, in order to obtain confessions.
Tens of thousands of Guatemalans, both civilians and combatants, were disappeared by government forces over the past 3 decades. One of the fundamental tasks assumed by the government and guerrillas through the ongoing U.N.-mediated peace process is to end the impunity with which such crimes have been committed.
The human rights situation in Burma has not improved with the passing of each new U.N. resolution condemning abuses; if anything, it is worse. This report documents the gross violation of human rights of the civilian population during the Burmese offensive against the KNU from November 1994 to February 1995.
Tens of thousands of Guatemalans have been forcibly "disappeared" by government forces over the past three decades, many of them civilians and some of them combatants. One of the fundamental tasks assumed by the government and guerrillas through the ongoing U.N.-mediated peace process is to end the impunity with which such crimes have been committed.
Although the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Cambodia has been hailed as one of the mostsuccessful ever, the country was back at war even before the last of the peacekeepers left. The civilian population now faces a wide range of abuses from both the Khmer Rouge and the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces.
Recycled Haitian Soldiers On the Police Front Line
The United States-dominated multinational force entered Haiti on September 19, 1994, with a mandate to "use all necessary means...to establish and maintain a secure and stable environment...." The force's presence permitted the reinstatement of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide and a reduction in the severe human rights abuses that plagued Haiti during the three year military regime.
