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Amnesty International
Amnesty International accused Israel of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip during its war with Hamas, saying it has sought to deliberately destroy Palestinians by mounting deadly attacks, demolishing vital infrastructure and preventing the delivery of food, medicine and other aid. The human rights group released a report Thursday in the Middle East that said such actions could not be justified by Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack into Israel, which ignited the war, or the presence of militants in civilian areas. Amnesty said the United States and other allies of Israel could be complicit in genocide, and called on them to halt arms shipments. Our damning findings must serve as a wake-up call to the international community: this is genocide. It must stop now, Agns Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International, said in the report. Israel, which was founded in the aftermath of the Holocaust, has adamantly rejected genocide allegations against it as an antisemitic blood libel. It i
The number of executions recorded worldwide last year jumped to the highest level since 2015, with a sharp rise in Iran and across the Middle East, Amnesty International said in a report released on Wednesday. The human rights group said it recorded a total of 1,153 executions in 2023, a 30 per cent increase from 2022. Amnesty said the figure does not include thousands of death sentences believed to have been carried out in China, where data is not available due to state secrecy. The group said the spike in recorded executions was primarily driven by Iran, where authorities executed at least 853 people last year, compared to 576 in 2022. Those executed included 24 women and five people who were children at the time the crimes were committed, Amnesty said, adding that the practice disproportionately affected Iran's Baluch minority. "The Iranian authorities showed complete disregard for human life and ramped up executions for drug-related offences, further highlighting the ...
The Canadian branch of Amnesty International said Monday it was the target of a cyber attack sponsored by China. The human rights organization said it first detected the breach on October 5, and hired forensic investigators and cybersecurity experts to investigate. Ketty Nivyabandi, Secretary General of Amnesty International Canada, said the searches in their systems were specifically and solely related to China and Hong Kong, as well as a few prominent Chinese activists. The hack left the organization offline for nearly three weeks. US cybersecurity firm Secureworks said a threat group sponsored or tasked by the Chinese state was likely behind the attack because there was no attempt to monetize the access, the nature of the searches, the level of sophistication and the use of specific tools which are distinctive of China-sponsored actors. Nivyabandi encouraged activists and journalists to update their cybersecurity protocols in light of it. "As an organization advocating for huma