Amnesty International

Genocide committed against Palestinians in Gaza, says 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

Amnesty Int'l urges Taliban to reopen secondary schools for Afghan girls

A month after the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan, the group reopened schools that were shut due to the COVID-19 pandemic

Executions worldwide jumped last year to highest number since 2015: Amnesty

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 ...

Is India misusing laws to crack down on NGOs, think tanks? FATF to probe

A team from the FATF is expected to visit India in November and meet representatives of non-profit organisations, including international ones, to get a first-hand understanding of the situation

Amnesty International calls on Pakistan to restore internet services

Human rights group Amnesty International has called on the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority to restore internet services in the country and access to Twitter, Facebook and YouTube

Amnesty International Canada says it was target of a China-sponsored hack

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

BJP's allure: The lack of a clear ideology

The party is comfortable with the current Constitution and laws of India, which are sufficiently flexible

Amnesty International finds twin Russian strikes hit Mariupol theatre

Amnesty said there was no evidence that the Donetsk Academic Regional Drama Theater was a base of operations for Ukrainian soldiers

Russia did war crimes in Ukraine's Kharkiv, says Amnesty International

Amnesty International has accused Russia of war crimes in Ukraine, saying attacks in the second largest city of Kharkiv, many using banned cluster bombs, have killed hundreds of civilians

Death penalty cases soar in Myanmar under military rule: Amnesty

Raising an alarm over the rights situation in Myanmar, Amnesty International has said the death penalty increased at an alarming rate under military rule

Amnesty's report on Israeli 'apartheid' causes strong reactions

Amnesty's 280 - page long report examines cases of discrimination against Arabs within Israel, the blockade of the Gaza Strip, the denial of the rights of citizenship, and more

Taliban killed minorities, fuelling Afghans' fears: Amnesty International

Taliban fighters tortured and killed members of an ethnic minority in Afghanistan after recently overrunning their village, Amnesty International said

Categorically stand by findings of Pegasus Project: Amnesty International

Amnesty International said it "categorically stands" by the findings of the Pegasus Project and asserted that the data is irrefutably linked to potential targets of NSO Group's Pegasus spyware.

8 more protesters shot dead in Myanmar, Suu Kyi faces corruption charges

Rights group Amnesty International accused the military of adopting battle tactics against demonstrators.

Govt crackdowns on youth and NGOs betray fear of emerging leadership

In the "managed democracy" that India seems to be moving towards, there is space for only a single political vision

As Amnesty shuts office, anxiety and uncertainty cloud the NGO world

NGOs have expressed concerns over the provisions of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill 2020. These, they say, will further clip the wings of the beleaguered civil society

Amnesty International halts India operations citing govt witch-hunt

Home ministry hits back, says human rights not an excuse for defying law

Human Rights can't be an excuse for defying law of the land: MHA on Amnesty

Ministry says after being denied FCRA nod, Amnesty dodged rules with its UK entity remitting large amounts of money to four entities registered in India, by classifying it as FDI

Amnesty's statement far from truth, attempt to influence probe: MHA

The Union Home Ministry said all the "glossy statements" about humanitarian work and speaking truth to power are nothing but a "ploy to divert attention" from their activities

Amnesty International shuts India operations, says govt 'freezing dissent'

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) began proceedings following an FIR by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on charges of an alleged violation of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act