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Human rights

Human rights
Latest news, features and analysis on human rights, with a focus on civil liberties in Hong Kong, mainland China and Asia.
A child tries to unlock a social media site after receiving an age verification message at her home in Sydney on December 10. Photo: AFP
Australia

Opinion | Australia’s social media ban offers a path between excess and inaction

For policymakers elsewhere, Canberra’s approach to children’s social media use isn’t a model to copy but one to learn from.

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Nordic nations

Venezuela’s Machado urges global fight for democracy after Nobel win

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Thailand

‘May he rest in peace’: remains of last Thai hostage in Gaza repatriated

US-China relations

Chinese boy Yuanxin, 6, speaks with father for first time since ICE detention

Phone call brings ‘relief’ to parent, though officials still will not say where the child is being held.

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The location of 6-year-old Yuanxin remains unknown more than a week after he was separated from his father during a routine ICE check-in. Photo: Family picture
Indonesia

Video | Indonesia sends home Dutch death row convict

Two Dutch nationals convicted of drug offences returned home after more than a decade in prison a week after Indonesia and the Netherlands signed a repatriation deal.

War and conflict

RSF says Israel killed highest number of journalists again this year

Reporters without Borders says the number of journalists killed reached 67 globally.

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The Philippines

Could ICC warrants against Duterte allies alter Philippines’ balance of power?

A former Duterte spokesman claims more of the ex-president’s allies will soon be arrested as part of a plot to ‘destroy the opposition’.

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Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte during a senate inquiry on the so-called war on drugs during his administration at the Philippine Senate in Manila in October 2024. Duterte is currently detained in the Netherlands. Photo: AP
US immigration

US government sued over removal of app that tracks immigration agents

ICEBlock developer alleges free speech violations after Apple removed the popular app following pressure from the Trump administration.

Africa

63 children among 114 dead in strikes on Sudan kindergarten, hospital: WHO

Reports paramedics were also targeted during rescue efforts, as WHO director general condemns attack.

Nepal

‘Like a market’: Chinese marriage brokers hunt for brides in Nepal

China’s bachelor crisis meets Nepal’s poverty in a trade that blurs the lines between arranged marriage and coercion.

A screenshot of a WeChat account that posts videos of Nepali girls and hosts live streams. Photo: Handout
United Nations

UN hits out at global ‘apathy’ as it slashes aid appeal for 2026

UN unveils streamlined plan to raise at least US$23 billion to help 87 million people in the world’s most dangerous places.

Destroyed buildings in the Nuseirat camp for displaced Palestinians in the central Gaza Strip. Photo: AFP
United States

Mamdani tells immigrant New Yorkers about their right not to comply with ICE

Mayor-elect’s video instructs New Yorkers on their right to remain silent, film agents, and refuse entry without a judicial warrant signed by a judge.

Israel-Gaza war

Trump UN envoy, EU chief in Jordan to discuss Gaza aid as Israel eyes next phase

Diplomatic visits to Jordan came as Israeli PM Netanyahu says the second phase of the US-sponsored ceasefire could begin soon.

Bangladesh

Bangladesh mass grave from 2024 uprising exhumed with UN support

The UN says up to 1,400 people were killed in the crackdowns, forming the basis for the former prime minister’s conviction for crimes against humanity.

Family members of Sohel Rana, who disappeared during Bangladesh’s July mass uprising, react as they stand outside the Martyred Intellectuals Memorial in Dhaka on Sunday. Photo: AFP
Africa

33 children killed in drone attack by Sudan paramilitaries, doctors say

17 adults were also killed in the strike on a kindergarten, which drew condemnation from the Sudan Doctors’ Network.

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Sudanese soldiers from the Rapid Support Forces unit are seen in the East Nile province in June 2019. Photo: AP
Thailand

‘We’ll bring him home’: Thai family to end long wait for Gaza hostage return

Sudthisak Rinthalak, who was killed two years ago by Hamas militants, is among 47 hostages whose bodies will be returned under a ceasefire deal.

United States

‘If Jesus were born in America now’: church’s nativity challenges ICE policy

Mother Mary in a gas mask, Baby Jesus zip-tied by ICE agents. A Chicago church’s nativity scene sparks debate by mirroring immigrant detention.

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Israel-Gaza war

Israel receives body from Hamas, says Rafah crossing could soon open

The handover of the final two deceased hostages is an important condition of the first part of Trump’s Gaza peace plan.

Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants wait for Red Cross members to receive a body before it is handed over to Israel in Beit Lahiya, in the northern Gaza Strip, on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters
Europe’s refugee crisis

Illegal migrants to UK face clothing and mouth searches for phones, SIM cards

The Home Office says the new powers are needed to gather intelligence quickly on criminal gangs suspected of smuggling migrants.

Africa

African nations push for recognition of colonial crimes and reparations

The economic cost of colonialism in Africa is believed to be staggering, with some estimates putting the cost of plunder in the trillions.

Switzerland

Swiss right-to-die group founder dies by assisted suicide

Ludwig Minelli, who championed freedom of choice at the end of life, died days before his 93rd birthday.

Ludwig Minelli in 2012. Photo: AFP
Pakistan

Pakistan rejects UN warning over legal immunity for military chief

A constitutional amendment approved by parliament earlier this month shields Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir and other top officials from prosecution for life.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif (right) and President Asif Ali Zardari (centre) jointly conferring the Baton of Field Marshal on Chief of Army Staff General Syed Asim Munir during a ceremony at the country’s President House in Islamabad on May 22. Photo: AFP
United States

US halts asylum cases after troop killing as Trump steps up migrant crackdown

A US official says the immigration agency will ensure ‘every alien is vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible’.

The Philippines

ICC rejects Philippines ex-president Duterte’s request for release

The court dismissed defence arguments that the 80-year-old should be released due to his advanced age and alleged declining health.

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United States

Trump vows to freeze migration from ‘Third World Countries’ after Washington attack

US president’s announcement follows the death of a National Guard member who was shot by an Afghan national.

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US President Donald Trump holds up a photo as he speaks to troops via video from his Mar-a-Lago estate on Thanksgiving. Photo: AP
South Korea

South Korean woman faces outrage after forcing worker to kneel in store

The incident in Suncheon has sparked anger over customer power abuse and workplace bullying.

A Daiso store in South Korea. Photo: Instagram/daisodaiso-idaeyeog
Myanmar

Political show? Why Myanmar is again cracking down on cyber scammers

Myanmar’s junta has been under pressure to raid fraud hubs by China as its citizens have been badly affected by these scammers, analysts say.

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US-China relations

US lawmakers urge Trump to condemn Myanmar’s China-backed ‘sham’ elections

Call comes after government’s plan to stop legal protections for Myanmar nationals in US, citing elections as proof situation was improving.

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