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New Japanese Espionage Law Would Need to Respect Rights

Click to expand Image Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (R) answers questions from the House of Representatives budget committee in Tokyo, November 7, 2025. © 2025 Kyodo via AP Photo During a parliamentary session on November 26, 2025, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said that her Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) government would soon consider new […]

2 mins read

Armenia Court Undermines Disability Rights

Click to expand Image The Criminal Court of Appeal building in Yerevan, Armenia, July 12, 2018. © 2018 Asatur Yesayants/Sputnik via AP Photo Armenia’s appeals court on November 19 significantly weakened protections against disability-based discrimination and further restricted access to justice for people undergoing disability assessment. The court overturned a progressive ruling by a lower court […]

5 mins read

UAE: Emirati Dissident Faces Risk of Torture at Home

Click to expand Image Jasem al-Shamsi. © Private (Beirut) –The detention of an Emirati dissident in Syria raises serious concerns that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will pressure Syrian authorities to extradite him, Human Rights Watch said today.  An informed source told Human Rights Watch that Syrian authorities detained Jasem al-Shamsi, 55, at a checkpoint […]

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Iran: Weaponizing Justice System to Persecute Baha’is

(Geneva) –Iranian authorities are escalating their repression of Baha’is, with a recent series of harsh prison sentences and asset confiscations, the Bahá’í International Community (BIC) and Human Rights Watch said today. Iran’s judiciary has been leading the persecution of Baha’is, amid increasing public incitement to discrimination by state officials, hate propaganda, and disinformation targeting the religious […]

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Georgia Hollows Out Right to Peaceful Assembly

Click to expand Image Protesters gather daily in Georgia’s capital, Tbilisi, after the authorities announced they were halting negotiations on joining the European Union. Demonstrators are demanding the release of political prisoners and snap elections, Tbilisi, Georgia, June 22, 2025. © 2025 Sebastien Canaud/NurPhoto via AP Photo Georgia’s ruling party has introduced new legislation that would […]

1 min read

UN and partners back new measures to help millions move from vulnerability to opportunity

A major UN meeting in Doha wrapped up on Thursday with a renewed drive to help the world’s poorest countries move towards long-term stability and prosperity, as senior officials urged stronger global partnerships to ensure that development gains are not lost once States exit the Least Developed Country (LDC) category.